


Day and Night

by Azura_Izolli



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Astral Plane/ Spirit World, Backstory, Bad Guys need love too, Coran is best pillow, Dark, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Everyone cries at least once, F/M, Flashbacks, Ghosts, It Gets Worse, Kinda Possession but really not, Kuro is Shiro's twin, Lotor has a harem, Making Friends, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Mental bonds, Not Really Character Death, Original Paladins in flashbacks, Original paladins - Freeform, Orphan "Kuro", Orphan Keith (Voltron), Orphan Shiro, Orphans, Probably Slow to Update, Rebirth, Reincarnation, So much angst, Storytelling through Songs, Twin AU, Twin Complex, We're All Mad Here, Zarkon is actually not so bad, but that's ok., crazy oc, greiving, mental breakdowns
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2018-11-30 07:31:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11458938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azura_Izolli/pseuds/Azura_Izolli
Summary: You and I are Yin and Yang.We are like the Sun and Moon.As different as Day and Night.One cannot exist without the other.(Or, an alternate version of the story beginning at the end of Season Three, where  "Kuro" is a girl called Kuroko. (Literally "Dark Child".) Twin AUTags may be edited later..





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This will be a story where I experiment and play with a few ideas and thoughts I had about the Netflix original series, Voltron: Legendary Defender. I intend to keep most things in canon, but also keep in mind that this was written before Season 3, so I may not include the third season into this story if it conflicts with my ideas. You no doubt know this, but it will be said anyway, I do not own Voltron. I do, technically own my own characters and ideas, however. It is also worth mentioning that several of my ideas are inspired by other works on this site, including the “Find me in the Shadows” and “Salt and Blood” works by Wenzel. As well as “Shining like the Stars” by trimegistus. The ideas that are inspired by ideas from these two writers are pretty basic, and only mildly similar, but it’s worth mentioning that I had the same ideas on my own before reading those stories. I’m only mentioning it because they are similar, and I have no intention of stealing other’s work. Also, they update faster than me, so definitely check out those two writers. It may give you enough time before I really get this started. Especially considering this is my first work on this site, and I’m still figuring it out. ^^ Be warned now that there will be many OCs and assumptions on Shiro’s home life. This story will have many mature themes, but I doubt I will write anything outwardly sexual. If I do, it will be a spin off. There will be many, many chapters done in flashbacks, and some may even be written around a song.  
> Naming note: Shiro’s full name is Takashi Shirogane. We know this. Shiro is actually the Japanese word for white, we also know this. And “Kuro” means black. This is why everyone calls Dark Shiro “Kuro”. In this fiction, Kuro is not Shiro. Kuro could mean “Black” or “Dark”, and the suffix “~ko” means “Child” So the name Kuroko would mean “Black Child” or “Dark Child”. This suffix is typically only used for feminine names, however. The “Kuro” in this story is actually Kuroko, who is the younger twin sister of Shiro. This idea comes from Takashi in the original series having a twin brother. I am making this twin female for the same reason that Pidge was made female. Kuroko’s real name is Ayane Shirogane. The name “Ayane” means “Colorful Sound”. This will be a main character trait for her, so it’s interesting to know the meaning of her name.  
> And with all that said, let’s begin!

Like Day and Night  
\---

Without sound, we entered the world.  
In the arms of a warm love.  
We opened our eyes and saw the world for what it was.  
Pure and innocent like the snow.  
You and I revolved around each other.  
Brother Sun and Sister Moon.  
One cannot exist without the other.  
This is why our bond is strong.  
Stronger than the gravitational pull between celestial bodies.  
No matter how far we may drift, we will always have each other.  
You and I are Yin and Yang.  
We are like the Sun and Moon.  
As different as Day and Night.  
One cannot exist without the other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **Prologue**  
**A Star is Lost**

\---

The Universe lost a star today.  
A sun that burned bright flickered out of sight like a candle.  
Millions of light-years away from his home, where few would ever even know he was gone.  
But those that did mourned the loss in silence.  
To them, it might have the entire Universe that burned out.  
His Bayard lay on the table alone. The six who stood around it could not find their words.  
Even the Lions had no words to offer in comfort.  
Everyone knew, but no one spoke.  
Takashi Shirogane was gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I wrote that little “poem” at the beginning. I know it doesn’t rhyme. It’s called a free verse. It’s the only kind I write actually. All other chapters will use a quote. But this isn't really a chapter. Next Chapter is pre-written and will be released on Sunday 7/16/2017.
> 
> Here is your preview:
> 
>  
> 
> _A month had passed since Shiro’s disappearance. In that time not a single person among the team said that he was dead. That word was forbidden. When Kolivan had used it, a furious Keith had almost broken his nose- if not for Hunk holding him back. He never said it again._  
>  _Color coordination sucked. During that month, the team learned very quickly that their battles were not over. A new threat had emerged and it wanted them dead. Keith reluctantly took over duties as the Black Paladin, since Shiro’s lion agreed with him. Lance found himself being made to bond with the temperamental Red Lion when Voltron was needed. This was because Allura had to fill in as a fifth Paladin, and Red would not allow her. The Blue Lion, however, was far more willing to accept its Princess. Lance still piloted Blue, but he would have to switch whenever they needed to form._  
>  _Their attack strategies were off balance. The team suffered more losses than wins, leading them to eventually go into hiding. Keith beat himself up daily because of his poor leading skills. While Allura and Kolivan taught him what they could. When they weren’t fighting, they were training. There was no time for remorse or mourning. There was no time for Shiro to be dead._  
>  _So, needless to say, there was no time for a distress signal._
> 
>  
> 
> _Chapter 1: Moving on_
> 
> _“Sometimes the hardest part isn’t letting go but rather learning to start over.”_  
>  _– Nicole Sobon_


	2. Moving On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again everyone! So, when I posted this chapter this morning, I was so out of it, I forgot my images! I drew pictures (and took pictures of my cat, as well as one saved image of a dress) for this story.
> 
> And with that in mind = This is Kuroko in her casual outfit, which is yet to be shown.
> 
> [And this is my Imgur page.](http://imgur.com/a/Pvy6X) It's full of drawing notes of Kuroko and her weapon. And pictures of my cat Segi. Warning for minor spoilers if you click there. Nothing important to the plot mind you. But there is a warning anyway.

**Chapter 1**

**Moving on**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_“Sometimes the hardest part isn’t letting go but rather learning to start over.”_

_– Nicole Sobon_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

A month had passed since Shiro’s disappearance. In that time not a single person among the team said that he was dead. That word was forbidden. When Kolivan had used it, a furious Keith had almost broken his nose- if not for Hunk holding him back. He never said it again. 

Color coordination sucked. During that month, the team learned very quickly that their battles were not over. A new threat had emerged and it wanted them dead. Keith reluctantly took over duties as the Black Paladin, since Shiro’s lion agreed with him. Lance found himself being made to bond with the temperamental Red Lion when Voltron was needed. This was because Allura had to fill in as a fifth Paladin, and Red would not allow her. The Blue Lion, however, was far more willing to accept its Princess. Lance still piloted Blue, but he would have to switch whenever they needed to form. 

Their attack strategies were off balance. The team suffered more losses than wins, leading them to eventually go into hiding. Keith beat himself up daily because of his poor leading skills. While Allura and Kolivan taught him what they could. When they weren’t fighting, they were training. There was no time for remorse or mourning. There was no time for Shiro to be dead. 

So, needless to say, there was no time for a distress signal. 

“What? No! There’s no way we- Ok what if it’s a trap? Honestly, they’ve done it before!” Keith was nearly shaking with exhaustion when Coran came to inform them of the signal. He had his helmet sitting next to him with his boots, and was trying to relax in the full five minutes he got after the last attack. They had wormholed off to a distant sector and he had just sat down with a drink. 

“Keith, you know the code, we can’t just-“ He cut her off when Allura tried to speak. 

“We should though! We’re barely holding ourselves together right now!” He sighed deeply. “Coran… What are the details of the signal? Where even is it?” He didn’t even try to hide his annoyance as he yanked his boots back on. 

“Well, actually, I don’t-“

“It was a Blade’s distress call.” Kolivan entered the room just in time to interrupt Coran. “It was privately received.” 

“So a friend then. Well, that’s good news at least!” Hunk perked up. He didn’t even bother removing his armor, and had just plopped himself into a seat to rest. 

“One of your comrades needs our help?” Keith gave Kolivan a quizzical look. 

“They disappeared about a month ago- just before our attack. I had sent them on a special mission and communications were lost shortly after departure. There had not been time until now to search for them.” As usually there was no sign of worry or distress in Kolivan’ words or on his face. Was that just a Galra thing? 

“What was the mission?” Keith asked, trying to compose himself and at least finish his drink. 

“To infiltrate Prince Lotor’s private transporter.” Kolivan stated the fact casually. 

There was a silence. 

“I hate that guy…” Lance muttered, breaking the silence. 

“What if it’s a trap?” Keith repeated, understandably suspicious. 

“If they had been caught at all, they would either be dead or made into a personal slave. Either way we wouldn’t be receiving a distress call from a nearby moon.” 

“Are they really that special? I mean if the only possibilities are death or slavery?” Pidge asked him this time, both her and Lance were still in full armor. Lance stood next to Allura by the door with Kolivan and Coran, and Pidge was in the kitchen with Hunk, likely about to get something to rehydrate herself with. 

Koilvan was silent for a moment while he considered his words. “This warrior is our only non-Galra member, and a female at that. She would either be executed as a rebel, or kept as a prize by the Prince- who is known for his exotic tastes in women.” 

Allura and Pidge visibly shivered at that thought. “I _really_ hate that guy…” Lance repeated. 

“Non Galra?” Keith was surprised. “She must have really impressed you… Well, if you’re certain it’s not a trap, then retrieving her should be simple enough.” 

“Somehow I get the feeling it’s not going to be simple at all…” Hunk muttered. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They learned very quickly why this person was in distress. 

“Ok, next time Kolivan gives us a distress call, make sure we know ahead of time if there are any MAN EATING MONSTERS!” Hunk screamed as he dove behind a rock and began shooting at a large beast that looked like a bi-peddle purple elephant with fur and fangs. 

After trekking through a dense forest with strangely colored everything, the team had found the small ship the Blade had crashed. It was stuck in a tree larger than the Yellow Lion (in width) and was tipped upside down with many of it’s contents strewn about. The top had been ripped open by something Hunk described as “having claws the size of a bus”. After peaking inside they could tell their distressed friend had been camping out in the overturned craft. Then they had been ambushed by this friendly fellow. 

“I honestly doubt this person is still alive, I mean she’d have to be monster food by now! We should just turn back now while we still can...” Lance attempted to aid Hunk in a suppressing fire, but ended up slipping and getting tangled in vines. “Ah, _Quiznack,_!” He struggled in them trying to free himself, but he needed a blade to cut them. 

“Too late for that now!” Keith rushed past Lance, slicing him free of the vines, just as the Blue Paladin was about to attempt shooting them off. “We have to-“

“Get out of my way, idiots!” A voice none of them had ever heard before came from the deep woods of the thick forest. 

“Huh? Wait, who said that?” Hunk looked around to find the voice, swinging his Bayard’s canon in every direction he turned. 

A figure rushed past them and charged the beast. Using an unusual polearm of sorts, they leapt into the air and landed on the furry man-eater- immediately stabbing it in the neck. Then they backflipped and landed perfectly on the ground as the beast fell to the ground. 

“You… Killed it...” Pidge stared in disbelief. 

“I made a decision to save my rescuers.” The mysterious fighter stepped closer to them. “Figured it be hard to leave if you got eaten. Especially by one of the lesser threats here.” She stood almost as tall as Hunk did. And while the gray Galra uniform she wore did a lot to hide her figure, it was obvious that she was a bit thick. She bore large hips and her belly and chest seemed to fit well into the armor. Whatever species she was, she was not a small woman. “Thank you for coming.” She said. “My supplies were running low… Though I certainly didn’t expect to be rescued by the Paladins of Voltron.” Her voice was deep for a woman, but still had a certain charm to it. It almost seemed like she was intentionally deepening her voice. She appeared to have a slight accent that was hard to distinguish. 

“Uhh... Sorry? Anyway, we should go before another one of those things comes.” Keith pointed at the carcass. 

“The Reorick? You know they travel in pairs, right?” She said, a hand on her hip. 

And as if on cue, a thundering roar came from the trees. Everyone jumped to attention, their hands on their weapons. 

“ _Quiznack_.” Keith cursed. 

“That’s not a Reorick.” The Blade said sternly. “Run!” She bolted off in the opposite direction. 

“I’m with her on this one!” Lance screamed as he followed behind. 

She led them through the thick wood at a quickening speed. After about 10 minutes of running, the four paladins found that they had been separated from their query. Keith had suggested they head back to the Lions and attempt to find her. They had left the Black Lion behind for this trip, mostly hoping that they wouldn’t need Voltron. That was about when they receive Allura’s message. 

“Keith! Come in, can you hear me? The planet’s atmosphere is interfering with our communications.” She seemed a bit frantic, like she’d been trying to contact them for quite some time. 

“Loud and clear, Princess.” Keith responded. 

“The Black Lion is planetside.” 

“What?!” 

“It left shortly after you landed, all on its own. You’ll need to bring it back with the Marmoa soldier.” 

“Great…” He said sarcastically. 

They flew just above the trees for several minutes before they picked up on a loud roar. 

“There!” Pidge said, aiming towards the southern-most part of the forest. Upon arriving they found a large beast that almost dwarfed the Black Lion. 

“HOW did we miss THAT?” Hunk asked in a panic. The creature looked much like a mosasaur, but with legs that suggested it was amphibious like a crocodile. And its target? Their new friend, standing atop the Black Lion, her polearm pointed at the beast. 

“Hey? Isn’t this your Lion?” She called out. “Whoa!” The creature made a swipe at her with it’s spiked tail, knocking her from her perch. But the Lion reacted and took her into its mouth. 

“Wait, did the Black Lion just…” Pidge said in disbelief. 

“Paladins! What is happening? Why is the Black Lion online?” Coran asked over the comms. 

“You are not going to believe this...” Hunk answered. 

“No time, Hey! If you can hear us over there, we need to Form Voltron! Let the Lion do the work!” Keith called out to a very confused warrior. 

“Umm… Ok…” Her image came up on screen, she was sitting in the pilot seat, looking around at all the flashing lights. “Uh… I can’t read any of this… Right, Altean characters…” She pushed up on the gears hoping it would work. The Lion seemed to at least understand what she meant to do, because it shot into the sky with the others. When the Lions moved together, she acted without thinking and formed despite having no connection to the Lions or their paladins. 

_“Form the sword, you should aim for the nape of the neck.”_

“Huh?” She looked around. The lack of response from the others suggested they didn’t hear it. Then she realized something. “I know that voice…” She said softly before looking up at the screen ahead of her. “Paladins… I may not know you very well, but listen. The Daruili’s weakest point is at the lowermost part of its neck. We should use Voltron’s sword to slash it. Or else this could take a long time.” She knew this weakness without the voice’s interjection. What she didn’t know was Voltron’s capabilities. 

“What? Hey don’t think you can- Ugh, never mind… Form Sword!” Keith was suspicious of her behavior, but decided asking questions would be easier later. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Once they arrived on the castle, Kolivan immediately stole her away to discuss something. After they returned 20 minutes later, he explained how she had been shot down by a scouter. 

“It is possible the Prince knew our intentions. I doubt it will be possible to infiltrate any of his vessels in the future.” He explained in his usual tone. His comrade stood beside him with crossed arms. 

“Excuse me..” Allura interrupted whatever was going to be said next and swiftly walked up to the rescued warrior. “Just who are you? And how can you pilot the Black Lion?” She demanded with maybe a bit too much force. 

The Marmoa Soldier tilted her head to the ground and didn’t speak for several minutes. There was a certain energy of sadness that seemed to speak out from the way her shoulders dropped, ever so slightly. However, Allura became impatient and demanded an answer a second time. Kolivan interrupted. “Normally I do not allow any member of our order to speak unless directed to, and they are certainly never to reveal their identities. Kuroko, I will make an exception with you. You may speak and reveal yourself.” 

Kuroko nodded and removed her helmet. 

And everyone gasped. 

“You’re… Human?” Lance was dumbfounded. 

“Did not see that one coming...” Hunk admitted. 

Kuroko was a young woman with broad shoulders and a strong, yet decidedly feminine face. Her eyes were a light gray, and her skin a soft porcelain. Her eyes were sharp, and bore a gaze that demanded respect, but at the same time showed a deep sadness. Her black hair was tied into a long braid that fell from her helmet and dangled just past her knees, and her bangs were parted to the left side of her face. Her face bore two small, almost unnoticeable, scars- one beside her right eye, and the other on the left side of her chin. “My name is Kuroko, and yes I am human… Actually… If I am to be completely honest with you…” She looked up to face them without fear. “My full name is Ayane Shirogane. Your former Black Paladin, Takashi Shirogane, is my elder twin brother.” She stood like a soldier, with her shoulders back and spine straight. Her face bore a look that would make some question if looks really could kill. 

The room was silent, as everyone stared at the girl. The Paladins were mostly shocked. The Alteans, however, seemed a bit confused. 

“I’m sorry, but who is that?” Coran finally asked. 

“It’s Shiro.” Keith said. “That’s his real name.” His eyes fell to the floor, unable to hide his grief. 

Kuroko spoke up again. “I have no intention of becoming your new Black Paladin. Kolivan told me what happened. The Black Lion allowing me to pilot it must have been a mistake. Takashi and I have mostly identical DNA, it probably just picked up on that and got confused.” She explained, a hint of anger in her tone. 

“No. You are mistaken Kuroko.” Allura studied her, her stance becoming more relaxed. “The Lions would certainly know the difference between twins. There can be no mistake.” 

Kuroko laughed sourly, causing Allura to be taken aback. “Please. You know nothing about me. Just look at how your Paladins are reacting. They may not know my face but I have a reputation.” 

“Heck yeah you do! You killed a guy once!” Lance accused. 

“I’ve killed far more than once McClain.” Kuroko interrupted with a stern voice. “I have been a member of the Blade of Marmoa for 2 years now.” 

“Yes, but I mean back on Earth!” His chest puffed out a bit. 

“Oh, that one... No, I was only blamed for that because they needed to pin it on someone. Yes, I was fighting the man at the time. He had sexually assaulted one of your younger classmates, and I was defending her. During our petty fight, he tripped and fell backward against the wall. The impact concussed him and he died because a vital spot of his brain was damaged. The reports say I pushed him. The cameras showed that I wasn’t even touching him. So, take that how you wish.” She explained the incident as casually as she would recite a shopping list. 

“Regardless, you have a history of violence.” Pidge stated. 

“All fights they started. And everyone thinks I’m the psychopath just because I’m not afraid to put someone in a coma. The point is, we all agree this is a bad idea. And since I have no intention of replacing my brother, this discussion is over. Give my regards to the haunted Lion, but I’m not interested in sloppy seconds with a semi-sentient mechanical kitty. Kolivan, are we done here?” He gave her a warning look. “That doesn’t work on me, remember?” She huffed before leaving the room, her braid swaying behind her. 

“What is a ‘sloppy second’?” Coran asked in a half-whisper. 

“You don’t want to know.” Hunk answered. 

“Haunted?” Lance whispered in confusion. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Kolivan found Kuroko staring out a window at the stars. “You know you can’t just run from this.” He said sternly. 

“Watch me.” She crossed her arms and looked away from him. 

“Kuroko.” He threatened. She glared at him with puffy eyes. “They need a fifth Paladin. The Princess needs to pilot the castle.” She huffed. 

“Why…” her fist clenched tightly. “Out of all the people in the universe- why _us_.”

“Because you were chosen. This was his destiny all along. As for you, well, I can think of no one more capable-“

“Shut up!” Her shoulders were shaking in frustration. “You know that’s not what I meant.” 

“You have a duty now. If you deny it, the universe suffers. I suggest you weigh your priorities.” He turned around and left her alone with her thoughts. 

Kuroko stared at the window with her arms crossed. She looked up longingly at the stars. They twinkled with a gentle light that shone from lightyears away. How many times had she looked up at this same sky wondering if he did the same? She sighed and sang a single line from an old song. “ _If from where you’re standing, you can see the sky above, I’ll be waiting for you_.” Her voice quivered as a deep sadness overcame her. “ _If you still believe…_ ” Tears rolled down her face as she lost balance and let her shoulder lean against the glass. “ _In love…_ ”

(Quick Note: Song is “If you still Believe in Love”. It’s the theme to a PS1 game Legend of Dragoon. Look it up, it’s a golden classic.”) 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

That night, Kuroko reluctantly walked into the dining room. Everyone was giving her a cautious look- save for those who didn’t glare. She noticed there was only one empty chair next to Kolivan and the Princess. She shook her head and turned to leave. 

“ _Kuroko_.” Kolivan warned. She gave a look that shot daggers. She stood defiantly with her hands balled into fists. After a moment, she sighed and walked over to sit down. 

“Kuroko,” Allura began cautiously, “Kolivan tells me you are an excellent pilot. He plans to leave you here to help us with our-“

“I’m staying. I don’t have to like it. None of us do. When you need your weapon, I will come. I don’t expect any of you to like me, nor do I expect you to trust me.” Kuroko looked up at the Princess. “Please excuse my boldness. I tend to seem… Volatile when I’m made to do something against my will. I’ll get over it. Don’t take it personally.” She looked back down at the… Goo? Yay… The meal passed in an awkward silence. Kuroko disappeared into her room immediately. 

No one went to sleep immediately. Even if there was nothing to do. After dinner was usually the time reserved for extracurricular and relaxing. Takashi would always be the last to turn in, as he would spend this time training or simply hanging out with the others. Even though he wasn’t there, they still came to the common room and enjoyed each other’s presence. Tonight, however, it seemed that no one was in a good mood. 

“Can you believe her?” Lance began, frustrated. He paced back and forth as he ranted on. “I mean, seriously, how could Kolivan expect us to work with _her_?”

Pidge remained silent and stared at her tablet. “Lance, we don’t really have a choice here. And it’s not like she’s going to be a leader or anything.” Keith tried to calm him. 

“Yes but, why _her_? Of all people in the universe, why _her_?” he gestured angrily to the empty doorframe. 

“Blood.” Pidge said finally. Everyone looked at her. “We’re all thinking it. But here’s the facts, Kuroko has a ton of rumors about her, sure, but how many are true? I’ve met her a few times before. Our brothers were friends, so they spent a lot of time together. I first saw her when I went to their place to pick up Matt. She was cooking and told me they were upstairs. I can’t say much about who she was, but Shiro never had anything bad to say about her. And to be honest guys, we know Shiro. There’s no way he’d be ok with having a sister half as crazy as the rumors said. In fact, When I asked him why he never brought her over, he said that she worked three jobs. I doubt she even had the _time_ to do all those things.” 

“So, what? Just pretend everything’s hunky dory?” Lance huffed. 

“I say, we give her a chance. We don’t have much of a choice you know. And I’d be surprised if she had anywhere else to go. I mean, you try to imagine what it must feel like to be completely alone.” Pidge’s voice dropped. “I know I’ve felt what she must be feeling right now.” 

Lance was silent for a moment. He looked down and rubbed the back of his head. “Ok… I’ll try... For Shiro.” 

Pidge smiled. “For Shiro.” 

Hunk had been sitting quietly when something occurred to him. “Hey, come to think of it… There was never any mention of their parents.” Everyone looked at him. “What? We all had to go to the memorial. Pidge and Coleen Holt were there for Matt and Samuel. But for Shiro, there was only one person. And honestly, I couldn’t even tell who because of the hood they wore, but it was probably just her.” He explained. 

Keith thought for a moment. “They lived in a two-bedroom apartment too. I mean, when he wasn’t at the Garrison.” 

“Wait,” Lance said. “So, they didn’t have parents?... Geez… No wonder she’s so bitchy…” He sat down. 

“What do you mean by that?” Keith tested, his voice sounding low and almost angry. 

“I mean, you’re an orphan and a total ass, and she’s an orphan and a straight up bitch.” Keith glowered at him. “You know, you’re not helping your case, right?” He teased. 

Keith took a deep breath. “I’m not in the mood for this crap…” He stormed off. 

“Wow… He’s actually matured a lot…” Hunk noted. 

“Wish we could say the same for Lance.” Pidge said, not looking up from her tablet. 

“Hey!” Lance yelled out defensively, and the other two laughed at him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elsewhere, Kolivan passed by Kuroko’s room and tried to enter. The door was locked, and the keypad was set to “sleep mode”. He almost thought he heard a faint crying from the other side. He hung his head slightly and sighed before deciding to leave her be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter seemed rushed. I needed to kickstart the story, and the details of how she got here didn’t seem important in the grand scale.. So it may also seem cliché, but I don’t really care ^^ And don’t expect epic battle scenes. I don’t do them well, so I tend to skip over them a bit. I also tend to time-skip anything that is unimportant. Or if it’s something that can easily just be referenced later and have the same effect. Anyway, it get’s better from here. I promise ^^
> 
> Also, Soon I will start flashbacks for Kuroko while on a Galra ship. And they will be going to another location with other Galra that are blades. So if anyone’s reading this and they have Ideas for names, please drop a few in the comments ^^ You will be credited of course. And I’d most likely use all names given. 
> 
> Second chapter is ready and will be posted 7/23/17
> 
> But until then, here is your preview: 
> 
> _Normally the house was quiet. She didn’t talk much, and he didn’t need to. They understood each other. A smile here, a small gesture there. They could hold hours of conversation and never say a word. A bond between them let one know what the other was thinking and how they felt. An unbreakable bond that could survive anything._
> 
> _Today was different. Ayane stood by the counter mixing tea leaves into two bowls. Takashi sat at the table looking out the window. The silence today was defining. Takashi wore his Garrison uniform, and a duffle bag lay by the door. Ayane was dressed simply in a white gown with an apron tied around her, her hair was gathered loosely in a hair tie that rested on her shoulder. They said nothing even as she sat down and gave him his tea. They said nothing as they sat across from one another, avoiding each other’s gaze. They both understood, but neither knew what to say. He looked at the time and sighed. He stood up and set his tea bowl in the sink. He placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled gently._
> 
> _“I’ll be back. Wait for me, Ayane.”_
> 
> _It was all she needed. She smiled as he left._
> 
> _But he would never come home._
> 
> _**Chapter 2**_
> 
> _**Never Alone**_
> 
> _“It's often just enough to be with someone. I don't need to touch them. Not even talk. A feeling passes between you both. You're not alone.”_
> 
>  
> 
> _― Marilyn Monroe_


	3. Never Alone

**Chapter 2**

**Never Alone**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_“It's often just enough to be with someone. I don't need to touch them. Not even talk. A feeling passes between you both. You're not alone.”_

_― Marilyn Monroe_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_Normally the house was quiet. She didn’t talk much, and he didn’t need to. They understood each other. A smile here, a small gesture there. They could hold hours of conversation and never say a word. A bond between them let one know what the other was thinking and how they felt. An unbreakable bond that could survive anything._

_Today was different. Ayane stood by the counter mixing tea leaves into two bowls. Takashi sat at the table looking out the window. The silence today was defining. Takashi wore his Garrison uniform, and a duffle bag lay by the door. Ayane was dressed simply in a white gown with an apron tied around her, her hair was gathered loosely in a hair tie that rested on her shoulder. They said nothing even as she sat down and gave him his tea. They said nothing as they sat across from one another, avoiding each other’s gaze. They both understood, but neither knew what to say. He looked at the time and sighed. He stood up and set his tea bowl in the sink. He placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled gently._

_“I’ll be back. Wait for me, Ayane._ ” 

_It was all she needed. She smiled as he left._

_But he would never come home._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Kuroko awoke to a dim lighting. “Still night…” She looked at the clock. “Early morning then.” It would be another two hours before the others would stir. Her time with the Blade had trained her to need less sleep. She didn’t have any of her normal belongings with her, so she had stripped to her underwear and the white tank top that she wore under the Galra uniform. Luckily the laundry services on the castle ship allowed her to simply drop her clothes into a bin and they would be immediately cleaned and returned in a matter of minutes. Normally she would shower twice a week, three if training or fighting was involved, and thoroughly wash her hair once a week. Being stranded had postponed her washing rituals. So she had immediately showered after dinner. Her hair was still down as she had fallen asleep before it dried. She now looked at the tangled mess and sighed in frustration. She opened a drawer beside the bed and found a thick brush that had been left for her in the showers. Allura had long hair too, Kuroko assumed it was left there by the princess who had to have understood how temperamental long hair can be. She spent the next hour untangling the mess and returning it back to it’s natural shine. It was still damp- of course- so she continued brushing. By the time she had finally finished maintaining her hair there was only about fifteen minutes left until the lights would turn on. There was a long dress left in the closet. It must have been Allura’s as well, since it was certainly no style she had seen before. It was still quite a bit more simple than the princess’s normal dress style, and for that Kuroko was thankful. It bore short sleeves much like a T-Shirt and reached the floor. A silver ribbon separated the skirt from the top of the dress, which had a lace pattern. It swayed nicely when she walked and fit her perfectly. She didn’t think wearing the boots from her Galra uniform would be appropriate but she had no other shoes, so she simply wore her socks. Instead of a full braid, she tied two sections from the sides of her hair into small braids and pulled them together for a tie off, allowing the excess to fall freely. Then she gathered all of her hair into a single ponytail at the base of her neck. She had just put her necklace back on when the lights turned on. She sighed and looked to the door. “Now or never I suppose… I should try to find the princess.” 

And so she walked out into the hallway. The dress was barely long enough to cover her socks. In Japan it was perfectly normal to walk about one’s home in socks if no house slippers were provided. Kuroko was unsure if this would be insulting to the princess, and hoped that she wouldn’t be offending her. She wandered around looking for the others, but it seemed like no one had stirred yet. She found Hunk in the kitchen, but he seemed busy with preparations, so she left him be. She ended up in the common room to find… Everyone else. “Oh.” She said. “I didn’t realize you would all be here.” 

Coran smiled brightly. “Here at the castle, everyone wakes up early! You should make a habit of it, Kuroko.” 

“I’ve been up for about two hours actually… It just took that long to detangle my hair.” She explained. 

Allura giggled a bit. “I know how that is. Mine is curly so it can be quite a hassle.” 

“Especially if you pass out when it’s wet.. Thank you for the brush by the way. I assumed that was you who left it for me. Without it the maintenance would have taken all night… And also thank you for the spare gown. I was pretty sick of that clunky armor… I couldn’t even remove the helmet in case I was discovered.” 

“I never wear that one, so you can keep it. It’s too big on me, and I dislike the design... It suits you though.” 

“Again, thank you.” 

“We will be going back to our main base soon for a regrouping. You can gather your supplies while we are there.” Kolivan offered to her. 

She looked at the ground, seeming sad, before looking back up at him. “Thank you, Kolivan.” Then Kuroko faced the others. “I should apologize for my behavior yesterday. While I still mean everything I said, and I’m still not at all happy about the situation, I shouldn’t have lashed out the way I did. I assure you, my anger wasn’t directed at any of you. I’m rather bitchy by nature, please don’t take it personally. That’s just the way I am.” 

“It’s fine. I can only imagine how you must have taken the news… And really, you weren’t that bitchy. Even Allura’s had worse moments than that.” Keith offered. Allura glared at him while Kuroko smiled. 

“Welp, I did my part. Can’t get mad at me now.” Kuroko said as she began to walk away. “Anyway I think Hunk is about to finish preparations. I’m going to check on that.” She walked away from them. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

After breakfast Allura had insisted they train in team building. Her reason was unspoken, but everyone knew. 

“It’s… Probably for the best. And I’ll admit at not being the greatest at working in a team. Also, be warned that I tend to yell at people in Japanese. It’s a just thing I do…” Kuroko confessed, rubbing the back of her head. 

After everyone had changed into their armor they returned to the training room. 

“Oh, right, you don’t have Paladin Armor.” Hunk said once he noticed Kuroko wearing a different colored version of Coran’s uniform, with primarily black parts, dark grey and dark blue accents. 

“Yeah… And I really don’t want to wear that Galra uniform ever again… In case you’re wondering, it’s just as suffocating as it looks. Especially when you literally wear it for a month on a planet with no air condition. It felt like a rain forest down there.” Kuroko had tied her hair back into her signature braid, but now it was pinned up in a braided bun, with the loose hairs at the end styled the hide the braided part. “And besides, my fighting style is all about not getting hit. So I’ll be fine until we can fix that issue. I’ll just make sure I bring my Blade armor when we stop by the base.” 

Allura and Coran walked them through the same exorcises they had when they first became Paladins. Keith, Hunk, Lance, and Pidge all did extremely well. They acted off one another like there was never a problem. There were times which even Kuroko began to think they were a hive mind. Her on the other hand… Not so much. She slammed into walls, fell through holes, and nearly had her jacket burned from a gunfire. Even Kolivan shook his head, explaining to the princess that her solo skills were superb. “This is exactly what I feared…” She told Coran. It wasn’t entirely Kuroko’s fault. Sure she was cold and apathetic, but trust worked both ways. She could tell that none of them were happy about the situation. She mused on how much the original members had improved when they stopped for a break. 

“Yeah, well, pretty sure that was the only reason that went smoothly…” Kuroko said softly. 

“You weren’t kidding when you said you were bad at this… Trust issues much?” Keith teased her a bit. 

“Takashi is the only person in this entire universe I ever fully trusted.” Everyone fell silent. “And even he left me behind.” Her voice had grown cold and dark. She sounded almost angry with him. She sighed and stood up to get another bottle of water. “Sorry for the bombshell. I’ll just have to try harder this time.” 

“Voltron depends on it.” Allura said sternly. Kuroko looked to her feet. “Honestly, after that I’m surprised you managed to even form-“ She was cut off when Kuroko very suddenly left the room. Allura realized then that she may have struck a sensitive nerve. Though she didn’t understand how. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

After following her, Allura found the new paladin standing in front of the Black Lion. Kuroko’s fists were clenched and she was shaking. She was talking to someone, but there was no one there. 

“How can you expect me to replace you… I’m not you. I never will be… After everything that’s happened… Am I really nothing more than your spare?” 

“Kuroko?” Allura walked up to her. “I’m sorry if I-“

“You didn’t. I’m just messed up.” She answered snarky. “I told you not to take it personally didn’t I? I still mean that.” Anger and annoyance dripped from each word. She sighed again and shook her head. “As if I didn’t have enough problems…” Her voice instantly dropped and was barely audible. “His voice just won’t leave me alone.” She walked off, leaving a confused Allura. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Kuroko had returned to the training room but everyone else had already left. She sighed and decided that letting off some steam would do her good. She stripped off her outer jacket to show her white tank top. She set it by her water bottle and began a spar with a training bot. She decided to leave it on “Learning mode” for a challenge. Keith entered after about 15 minutes and simply watched her. She had been so focused on her opponent that she didn’t notice. She held her weapon in both hands and used it as a block to keep the bot at bay. When it swung it’s weapon back, she took the opening to slide under it, then gave a quick kick to the back and knock it off balance. Her kick had given her just enough time to find her footing, and lodge her weapon’s blade into the bot’s neck socket, ending the simulation. 

“Not a scratch. Kolivan wasn’t kidding.” Kuroko looked at Keith. She was barely even out of breath. 

“Wouldn’t be a Blade if I couldn’t fight. But Voltron’s level of teamwork is just out of my range of capabilities. Doesn’t mean I won’t try. Nothing worth doing is ever easy.” She explained as she went to sit down, setting her weapon against the wall. 

“Tell me about that thing, it’s some sort of spear right?” He asked her as he sat down beside her. 

“Naginata actually. Well, sometimes. The Blade made it for me.” She explained. “Since I don’t have Galra blood their knives that they use won’t activate for me. They were going to make something for me that only I could use. I requested it be a Naginata. It has more uses than just this.” 

“May I see?” Keith asked her. 

She took the weapon and stood away from the bench. “It’s base form is simple and small for easy hiding,” The pole shrunk to simply be a ten inch long rod with an Ito design from a blue wrap. “The bottom even has my name on it. Sorta… It’s the kanji for “Kuro”.” The rod then grew back into the Naginata form. “I designed the blade actually It’s a Muramachi Era style to be specific. It’s one of the most popular, see how it curves slightly here?” She said, pointing to the blade. “Naginata are often used to hook or disarm an opponent. And they have an advantage over swords because of their reach. And this-” She held it out horizontally as it grew in width the form a surf-board shape. The width was about twenty inches, and it bore the Marmoa’s symbol. “Is the Guard form.” 

“So that’s where the emblem is…” Keith mused. 

The shield retracted and she grinned. “Last but not least, the reason some Galra call me “Wraith”.” She swung the Naginata around and the blade snapped backwards before sprouting a smaller blade opposite it and a spike to separate the two. Keith nearly jumped from his seat. 

“It’s… It’s a scythe?” He was surprised considering the rarity of such a weapon. 

“Yup. It’s kinda my trump card, it’s usually just enough to catch my opponent off-guard. And that gives me the perfect opportunity to finish them off.” She then retracted the blade and the pole shrunk to it’s base form before she set it aside. 

Keith stared off in thought. “I wonder what form your Bayard would take then. It could form several weapons in Zarkon’s hands.” 

Kuroko sat beside him and looked at her feet. “I’ll stick to my naginata.” 

“Why? If you’re the Black Paladin, the Bayard is yours now.” Keith looked directly at her. 

“No it’s not, I won’t touch it.” She said curtly. 

“I know you feel like your just a replacement but that’s not-“

“No Keith, you don’t understand. The Bayard belongs to Takasi. It’s not mine. I can’t explain it but…” She sighed. “Nevermind…” She trailed off. 

“Kuroko the Lion chose you.” Keith leaned forward. 

“Keith, my battle skills are physical.” I’m no pilot. My leadership skills are the equivalent of taking over and doing it all on my own or waiting for Takashi to step in. There is absolutely no reason the Black Lion would choose me as a proper pilot. There’s another reason I’m here… I just don’t know what it is. And if the voices would let up for just a moment, I swear I’d be able to think straight.” She seemed frantic and exasperated as she sat there with her hands shaking. 

Keith’s eyes widened and he sat in silence for a moment. “Um… Voices?” 

“Yes, Keith, voices… You know- just forget it. It’s not like you don’t already think I’m crazy…” She stood up and began to walk away. 

“Kuroko-“ He tried to stop her. 

“What?” She spun around to yell at him. “Are you going to tell me that I need to try harder to connect with people? That I shouldn’t walk off during a conversation because it’s rude? Well I don’t care!” Her fists were clenched. 

Keith stood up suddenly. “Honestly, you sound like a spoiled kid. And it’s beginning to get annoying.” 

Kuroko huffed and turned away. “I’m not spoiled Keith. It’s the opposite. I have nothing. Everything I had ever care about eventually left me. I was forgotten and left behind. In my life there have only ever been four people that I ever actually cared about. And three of them are dead.” He could see now that she was crying. “Is it really so much to ask to just be left alone? Am I really spoiled for not wanting to be hurt again? I figured you, of all people, would understand what it’s like to be abandoned.” 

He looked down for a moment before walking over to her. He thought about what to say. He asked himself what Shiro would say. “Kuroko… Just know that you’re not alone. This is a team you know. We’re here for each other. But we still have to let each other in.” Keith gave her a patient look. 

She laughed softly. “Takashi was right to pick you to succeed him. You sound just like him right now.” 

Keith was surprised at her comment. “Really?” 

She smiled and looked back at him. “Yeah… You do…”

“You miss him.” He accused. 

“…” She sighed. “Keith…” She sighed. “I have spent every moment of these past two years looking for him. I’ve done countless things that I never thought I would. I’ve stolen an alien ship, impersonated soldiers, seduced Galra commanders to assassinate them, and killed hundreds- leaving such a trail of blood behind me that even the Galra- the most widely known for their bloodthirsty wiles- now think I’m a demon.” She was fighting back tears. “And if I thought- even for a moment- that I could see him again, even if just to say goodbye… If I had to, I’d do it all over again. Just to see him one last time. Because he was all I had left.” 

Keith put a hand on her shoulder for support. “I know. I feel the same way. But he wouldn’t want any of us to put our lives on hold for him. You may have been alone then, but you’re not alone now. We have each other. You, Me, Hunk, Pidge, Coran, Allura, the mice, and even that idiot with the shiny teeth.” 

“His teeth ARE shiny! How does he do that? Space Bleach?” Keith looked blankly at her for a moment, and then they both burst into laughter. 

After catching his breath, he smiled at her. “Don’t isolate yourself. We’re all grieving here. But trust me, it’s a lot better when you have friends.” 

“Thank you. I mean it. But… Don’t be offended if I suddenly run off again. It’s not you… Any of you. I do that when I’m afraid of lashing out. I’ve killed people who happened to be blocking me when I was in a rage. Not on purpose, mind you. It’s just that I have much less control than before. I think I just have a lower tolerance now..” She said softly. 

“Been there before…” Keith’s mused. 

At that moment Hunk entered the room to find them. “Oh, hey, you’re both here. I made some snacks, so you’re free to help yourself. I think everyone’s already in the kitchen. 

“Is it made of Space Goo?” Kuroko asked apprehensively. 

“Nope! We get various ingredients from across the galaxy, and I spend my spare time mixing it into yummy things!” 

“I like your hobbies. They sound very delicious.” Hunk laughed as the three of them walked to the kitchen. 

“So what sort of hobbies do you have?” Hunk asked her. 

“I stab inanimate objects and pretend they’re purple space cats.” Kuroko said this with a perfectly calm and straight face the very moment they walked into the kitchen. Everyone- even the mice- stared at her. Finally, Pidge broke the silence by laughing like an idiot and nearly falling over. Everyone else was soon to follow. When the laughter died down, Kuroko smiled. “In case you couldn’t tell, I was joking… Mostly.” She chuckled a bit and sat down. “Actually, I do all sorts of things. Mostly I listen to music or sing. I’m an avid tea drinker and have even made my own blends using Galran ingredients. I’ve taught many comrades the secret of a Japanese Tea Ceremony, as well as how we toast in Japan. And sometimes, when I’m completely alone and desperately need to do something with my hands, I sew. Apparently some Galra are fascinated by traditional Japanese Yukata and Kimono.” 

“That’s right, You and Shiro are Japanese. So how do you toast in Japan?” 

Kuroko smiled and held up the cup that was set in front of her. “Kanpai!” She said cheerfully, everyone took their cups and followed suit. They all took a sip, and she immediately gagged a bit. “Why was I not expecting this to not taste weird?” Everyone laughed again. 

And for a moment, everything felt normal. Everyone was laughing and joking for the first time in what felt like forever. Deep down they knew, that if the Black Lion had chosen anyone that wasn’t Shiro’s twin, they would have not warmed up to them so quickly. But they would slowly build a relationship out of mutual understanding one each other’s grief. And maybe that was exactly what Shiro wanted. He was never the type to want others to be sad or in pain. He would take the pain, and all the risks. He would be the victim while everyone else was safe. That’s what he did. Allura found herself staring longingly at the door. 

“Princess?” Coran asked her. “Is something wrong?” 

She snapped back to reality, and noticed everyone was looking at her. “Oh! I’m fine! I just… Thought I saw something…”

Lance raised an eyebrow. “Like what?” 

“Nothing important, I’m sure it was nothing…”

“Ok..” He stared at her, seeming worried. 

“Yeah…” Kuroko casually took a bit of a cookie. “This castle is so haunted.” 

“Wait, what?” Hunk nearly dropped the pan of cookies he just took out of the oven. 

<

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, everyone, so Chapter 3 is not yet ready, but I have your preview. 
> 
> Also, the appearance for Momma Shirogane was by a YouTuber named Erin Kelly. When I actually post Chapter 3, I will leave a link to the video where a drawing of this woman (and other Voltron mothers) is shown. Please enjoy the preview! 
> 
> Next Chapter will be uploaded on 8/4/2017 (Edited because I ran out of time due to having to many things on my plate at a time ^^')
> 
> _“Ayane, Takashi, please come inside now.”_
> 
> _A woman stood in the doorway of an old home. She was short and small but wore a youthful beauty that many women envied. Her shoulder length bob hair cut swayed in the warm spring breeze. She wore a simple lavender dress with a long white apron._
> 
> _“Yes, Momma!” Called out a young boy. His hair was short, but hopelessly fluffy. His mother had once spent hours trying to tame it, but eventually gave up on the perpetually messy do. He nearly tripped as he stood up from the sandbox and ran over to his mother. His sister was quiet as ever but just as energetic. They both wore simple tank tops with shorts. The heat in America seemed unbearable, even though it was still only late spring. The twins had spent their afternoon building sandcastles. They had brought dolls and action figures to fill the halls. When their mother had called them in, Queen Barbie was launching a war against the brave G.I. Joe army that defended a large castle, and was led by the angel mecha king Gundam Wing._
> 
> _The woman laughed. “You two are filthy.. Go wash up, I’ll have dinner ready soon.”_
> 
> _“Is Daddy coming too, Momma?” The little girl asked. Her big grey eyes pleading to her mother, as her messy ponytail fell from her shoulder._
> 
> _“No, I’m afraid his still busy at work.” She then ushered her children to the bathroom and began the shower for them. “Alright, you get ten minutes before I come and get you.” They giggled their agreements and jumped into the shower to clean up._
> 
> “Takashi…” Kuroko stared at the Black Lion. “Why… What are you trying to tell me?” She asked. 
> 
> “Please…” The voice was frail and barely audible. “I can’t… On my own…” His voice cut out, she couldn’t make it all out. 
> 
> “Taka, I can’t understand you, what are you saying?” She was beginning to sound frantic. 
> 
> “Ayane… Help me… Save… Them… From… …” Something seemed to be straining him. 
> 
> “Who? The Paladins? Save them from who?” 
> 
> “Oni.” 
> 
> _**Chapter 3**_
> 
> _**Memories**_
> 
> _“The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living”_
> 
>  
> 
> _― Marcus Tullius Cicero_


	4. Memories

**Chapter 3**

**Memories**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_“The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living”_

_― Marcus Tullius Cicero_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_“Ayane, Takashi, please come inside now.”_

_A woman stood in the doorway of an old home. She was short and small but wore a youthful beauty that many women envied. Her shoulder length bob hair cut swayed in the warm spring breeze. She wore a simple lavender dress with a long white apron._

_“Yes, Momma!” Called out a young boy. His hair was short, but hopelessly fluffy. His mother had once spent hours trying to tame it, but eventually gave up on the perpetually messy do. He nearly tripped as he stood up from the sandbox and ran over to his mother. His sister was quiet as ever but just as energetic. They both wore simple tank tops with shorts. The heat in America seemed unbearable, even though it was still only late spring. The twins had spent their afternoon building sandcastles. They had brought dolls and action figures to fill the halls. When their mother had called them in, Queen Barbie was launching a war against the brave G.I. Joe army that defended a large castle, and was led by the angel mecha king Gundam Wing._

_The woman laughed. “You two are filthy.. Go wash up, I’ll have dinner ready soon.”_

_“Is Daddy coming too, Momma?” The little girl asked. Her big grey eyes pleading to her mother, as her messy ponytail fell from her shoulder._

_“No, I’m afraid his still busy at work.” She then ushered her children to the bathroom and began the shower for them. “Alright, you get ten minutes before I come and get you.” They giggled their agreements and jumped into the shower to clean up._

“Takashi…” Kuroko stared at the Black Lion. “Why… What are you trying to tell me?” She asked. 

“Please…” The voice was frail and barely audible. “I can’t… On my own…” His voice cut out, she couldn’t make it all out. 

“Taka, I can’t understand you, what are you saying?” She was beginning to sound frantic. 

“Ayane… Help me… Save… Them… From… …” Something seemed to be straining him. 

“Who? The Paladins? Save them from who?” She stepped forward, trying her best to keep him with her. 

“Oni.” His voice faded out, his image faltered. 

“Kuroko?” A voice from behind. She spun around to see it’s owner, her breath hitched and a cold chill ran down her spine. 

“Lance…” She practically breathed a sigh of relief. “Hi…” She rubbed the back of her head. “Do you.. Need something?” She asked cautiously. 

“Who were you talking too?” He wore his casual outfit, and she was only wearing the pants Coran gave her with a white tank top. 

She looked back at the Black Lion. He was gone. She sighed and hung her head. “No one…”

He gave her a worried look. “Ok…” He stared at her for a moment. “I’m just gonna go now…”

She watched him leave. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Training was going much better. They were beginning to act more like a team. It was obvious that Kuroko was pushing herself to fit in with them. The strain was making her irritable at best, though she’d take it out on opponents or gladiator bots. Allura suggested a mind meld. 

“The last time someone saw my brain I killed them… Though, to be fair, they didn’t ask first.” Kuroko sat on her knees in a traditional way. Allura gave her a testing look. “What? Consent is everything on Earth.” She calmly placed her hands on her knees. 

“It’s crucial when you form Voltron that you meld your minds to the Lions. No secrets are to be kept between Paladins. The others have heard this, of course, but you must understand how crucial this is. Are you paying attention?” Allura nearly scolded Kuroko, who sat so quietly with her eyes closed that the princess must have assumed she was sleeping. 

“I meditate on a daily basis, this is no different. Also, meditation is surprisingly effective on headaches.” She said calmly. Coran instructed them to begin their Melding. 

For the others, it was different this time. In a way, everyone thought of Shiro. Keith recalled a moment the two shared where the former leader asked Keith to take his place if the worst was to come. Pidge thought of the day Shiro called her by her real name and told her that her parents would be proud. Lance wore a grin as he remembered bringing home a cow to the ship. Hunk’s first memory was of all of them together making “laser” noises. A melancholy sigh seemed to sweep over everyone. And in sheer curiosity, everyone dived warily into the memory Kuroko brought up. Her brother had originally thought of the Kerboros launch, but she thought of a childhood moment. 

_A sakura scented breeze tangled itself into her unbound hair. Takashi and Ayane sat upon a hill under the cherry tree, a blanket had been set out beneath them. Their parents spoke about an old memory of a first date as their mother set out the bento boxes. Ayane took her brother’s hand gently and smiled_.

_“Taka, sit down and close your eyes.” She said, pulling him down._

_“Hmm? Why? Is something wrong?” He gave her a questionable look as they both sat seiza._

_“No, I just want to remember this. Please, let’s all close our eyes and feel the moment. I want to always remember us being like this.” She reached out her hand to her father._

_The man smiled at her. He looked almost exactly like his son, but his ears were flatter, and his silky hair was cropped in a professional style. “I think that is a wonderful idea, Ayane. Memories are best kept in one’s mind.” The family of four held hands and set in silence. The breeze embraced them, as if promising this moment to never be forgotten. Ayane quietly sent a wish to the heavens that their family would never be broken, and always remain happy._

The image of her family holding hands before a picnic was shown to everyone. Nothing was said. The emotion of the memory told everyone in the room why Shiro never mentioned his parents. A single tear rolled down Ayane’s face. Then she breathed out and straightened her shoulders as she concentrated. An Image of Shiro’s face, scarred and white tuffed, blurred into the Black Lion. Everyone followed suit and Voltron soon formed in their minds. 

“That…” Allura stared at the image. “Went better than I expected.” She smiled at Kuroko. “Maybe I underestimated you.” 

She sat up and gave a stern look to the princess. “A mind meld doesn’t make thing better.” She walked away and left the room. 

“Ok, but can I say something?” Lance almost raised his hand. “Does anyone else notice her talking to herself? Cuz it’s creeping me out.” 

Allura sighed. “I suppose there would still be some secrets after a first mind meld.” Allura mused. 

“That girl has more problems than a normal shrink can fix.” Hunk said with a sigh. 

“I wonder what happened to their parents though…” Pidge stared at the door. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_“Ayane.”_ The voice reached out to her as she entered the hanger. _“Ayane, please-“_

“Taka! Where are you?” Kuroko nearly fell over when she heard him. There was no answer. She immediately ran to the Black Lion. “What do you want?” She demanded from the semi-sentient wildcat. But he had no response. So she stomped up to hit and punched the foot. “Tell me! What do you want with Takashi!?!” Suddenly there was a flash of white light. She found herself floating over the empty void of space. There was no sound, and nothing but pure darkness around her. She closed her eyes and screamed as her hands held her head tightly. No sound escaped her lips. 

“Ayane.” 

Suddenly, there was light. Flashing lights were all around her in blue, green, yellow, red, and purple. They seemed small and far away, like fairy lights at Christmas. They twinkled like stars. But Kuroko couldn’t notice them. Before her was a pillar of brilliant white light. It nearly blinded her, but she wouldn’t dare look away. She reached her hand out, her lips mouthed the name of her lost brother, as tears rolled from her eyes. She had no voice. 

“Ayane, listen to me. I’m still here. Within the Lion. The others, they’re in danger. I can’t help them from here, but you can! They need you, Ayane- I need you!” The pillar of light molded into his image. With no voice, Ayane couldn’t answer him. Tears continued to drip from her cheeks as she nodded with a weak smile. Takashi smiled gently and pushed her hair behind her ear. “You will have to be their Black Paladin. But don’t be afraid. I’m not gone. I’m here. And I will return.” A cold darkness set over them, cruel and heartless. “It’s just that there’s something I need to finish here.” He looked over his shoulder before turning back to her. “Give yourself to the Lion, sister. It’s the only way.” He faded into black. In her desperation, she reached out to him over and over. Her efforts were worthless and her sobs unceasing. After a moment, she realized she could hear the sobs. 

Kuroko woke up, kneeling on the floor with her legs under her butt. She was before the Black Lion, and still at it’s feet. She looked down at it and began to sob more. 

That night she dreamed of the last time they had spoken. 

_“Ayane…” Takashi began as he placed his hand over hers. They sat at their kitchen table, dinner had just finished and the low whirring of the dishwasher could be heard. The rice for next morning was already in the steamer. Takashi’s bag was already set next to the door_.

_“Please… Don’t say it.” Her head was down as she refused to look at him directly._

_“I know you don’t want me to go.” He said softly._

_She sighed. “But I can’t stop you.” She looked up and smiled weakly. “This was your dream, wasn’t it? Then go. I’ll be fine. I have put in all my time so that you can live your dream. Don’t… Don’t let me…” She looked down again, tears welling in her eyes. “Hold you back…”_

_He squeezed her hand gently to reassure her. “Ayane, you’ve never held me back. Your dedication to what’s left of our family keeps me going. But, sister, please promise me this.” He took her hand in both of his. “Don’t just do it for me. While I’m gone, please work for your own happiness. I want to see you be happy.” He smiled at her, and she smiled back._

_“Can you do that for me, Ayane?”_

_“Kuroko?”_

“Kuroko?” 

There was a knock as she blinked herself awake. She checked the clock. 10:30 could still be considered early in the night, but even if she hadn’t turned in early, the others should be asleep. 

“Are you awake?” The voice belonged to Hunk. 

“No.” She answered, still groggily and a little annoyed. 

“Can I come in?” He asked cautiously. 

“Let me put some pants on.” After a few minutes she opened the door. She then walked over to her bed and flopped down with a big yawn. “Ok, big guy, what do want?” She still sounded annoyed. 

“Umm… Sorry for waking you.” He sat next to her. “I probably should have waited until morning, but I couldn’t sleep.” Something was obviously bothering him. 

Kuroko rubbed the back of her head. “I’ll sing to you, but I don’t do bedtime stories.” She said casually. 

He just stared at her for a moment before laughing. “Hah! Good icebreaker, but no. Actually… Ok, so um, Shiro was always good at pep talks.” He rubbed the back of his head. 

She laughed, “Yeah, he was. If you want me to do the same thing, then you should know that I don’t sugar coat.” She gave another large yawn. 

“I wouldn’t want you to. Anyway… I wanted to ask you about something…” He seemed paler than before. 

“Shoot.” She looked directly at him. 

He took a deep breath and sat his hands in his lap. “Are they on Earth? The Galra, I mean.” 

She stared at him for a moment, then looked back down. “They will be. It’s their next target. Kolivan told me during the briefing.” 

His shoulders shook a bit, then sank. “Is… There anything we can do?” He asked in a shaky voice. 

“Not as we are.” She said bluntly. They sat in silence for a moment. “I was going to tell everyone after we had built enough teamwork to actually be able to do something about it.” She sighed. 

“Yeah… Best not to cause a panic.” He said softly. 

“Just so you know, your families are safe.” She looked at him. “Marmoa learned that Lotor was planning a takeover of Earth after learning that all the Paladins were human. After that, they sent scouts down to gather people he’d be interested in. Your families aren’t even on Earth right now. They were taken as a safety precaution to an outpost on the moon of a neutral, peace-loving planet called Daretha.” 

Hunk breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. So wait, do they know?” There was a sense of urgency in his voice. 

“That you’re a Paladin? Yeah.” She remained calm. 

“So um… What about your parents? And, is that how you met the blade?” He looked at her now. 

And Kuroko just laughed. “Nope, you don’t have a high enough friendship level to activate my tragic backstory.” She turned and smiled at him. “Anyway, you should go to bed. Everyone’s safe, Earth is safe- for now. Now go the fuck to sleep.” At that, she flopped back with her arms flopped out. 

Hunk laughed. ”Ok, ok, I’ll let you sleep.” He turned to walk away. 

“Hey, Hunk.” He looked back at her as he reached the door. “Don’t worry so much, ok? We’ll figure something out. If five semi-sentient robotic Lions can combine into a single knight, then taking out an army of purple space cats shouldn’t be too hard. And it’s not like we’re alone in this.” She straightened up on her bed and made herself comfortable. “So don’t worry. We got this.” 

“Good pep talk, Kuroko.” He smiled before he walked away. 

She sighed as she stared at the ceiling. “Taka, why did you have to be so amazing?” 

It didn’t take long for her to drift off into sleep. 

In her dreams, she met with a cruel subconscious. Images flashed through her mind one after another. Two small Japanese children standing under a single shared umbrella at a funeral. A woman laying in a hospital bed as her children were escorted out of the room. Ayane being reprimanded by the matron for refusing to speak in English. Takashi being rewarded for his academic success. The two of them being turned down by yet another childless couple. 

_“Ayane, my sweet child.”_ Her dreams showed her the face of their mother in her prime. _“You are so much stronger than you look.”_ She caressed the face of a six-year-old Ayane in a white dress. _“And Takashi, your father and I will always be proud of you.”_ She smiled at her son then closed her eyes. _“I won’t be here much longer children. I’m sorry I have to leave you alone so soon. But I am confident that you will be safe. Please, take care of each other. You are both amazing, and I am grateful to have been lucky enough to have such wonderful children.”_ Her image began to fade. _“Please remember your father and I as we were. And remember, that even if the whole universe is against you, you will always have each other.”_

As the image faded her dreams showed her the smiling face of her brother. 

_“I’ll be back. Wait for me, Ayane.”_

Then everything went black. 

_“You will soon learn it was a mistake to challenge the Empire.”_

She saw an image of her home world surrounded by fleets of Galran ships. 

_“Surrender now, or you will suffer.”_

The chilling image of Price Lotor’s prideful smile woke her with a start. 

She looked around frantically as she attempted to catch her breath. Her lungs felt like she had just run for miles. When Kuroko finally called down, she looked at the time, the lights wouldn’t turn on for another three hours. She flopped back onto the bed, still not fully recovered. When she felt hot tears begin to well in her eyes, she decided to sleep was pointless. She tossed on her pants and tank top and began to jog laps around the halls. When she entered the kitchen after the lights turned on, she simply poured herself a glass of water. One by one, the other residents of the castle stumbled in. 

“Whoa.” Lance stared at her with wide eyes for a moment. “How long have you been awake?” 

“About three hours. Couldn’t sleep, so I jogged.” She shrugged off the answer and poked around in the kitchen. “I don’t suppose there are eggs, are there?” 

Hunk laughed. “Welcome to Space.” 

“Pretty sure I’ve been out here longer, but thanks.” She stated in a straightforward tone. 

“What? Are there Space Eggs?” Lance teased. 

“Yes actually. The eggs that Galra tend to cook up are quite good. They’re a weird as fuck color, but damn are they good on toast.” She decided to give up on her hunt for food and just sat down instead. 

“I’ll, uh, take your word for it.” Lance held up both his hands in protest. “I refuse to partake in anything with the word “Galra” in it.” He crossed his arms. Keith glared at him. “What? You take offense because you’re half- Galra?” His chest puffed out. 

“If being part Galra is all I need for you to leave me alone, then I’ll shout it to the rooftops.” Keith crossed his arms and smiled. 

Lance’s face turned beat red with a blush as he realized what he had said. He huffed and turned to Hunk. “Can you cook something so I don’t have to hear him talk?” He pointed at Keith. 

Kuroko snorted. “You started it Lance, so fill your own mouth.” Everyone but Lance laughed. 

Whatever Lance was going to say was lost when Allura entered the room with Coran and Kolivan. Kuroko instinctively straightened up and stood at attention. Allura started the announcement. “Kolivan and I have been discussing strategies, and he is just as concerned as I am with the lack of attacks lately.” 

“Maybe Lotor’s finally giving us a break?” Hunk offered. 

“Doubt it. The only explanation is that he’s planning something big as an attempt to trap us.” Kuroko said, looking at Hunk with a warning. He looked down. “I suggest that we exploit this reprieve to increase our skills. Then, we can figure a way to counter their trap.” 

There was silence as an obvious question loomed in the air. It was Pidge that finally said it. “Earth.” There was poison in her tone. “They’re going after Earth.” Lance paled and wore a shocked expression. “And you knew, didn’t you.” It wasn’t a question. 

Kuroko sat with her arms crossed. She was just about to respond when Kolivan interrupted. “I informed her of the planned attack.” 

Pidge slammed her hands on the table. “WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL US?!?” She bolted up to Kolivan, demanding an answer. 

“Pidge.’ Kuroko remained calm, and gave the younger girl a stern look. “What would you do even if we told you immediately? What can you do now? We can’t form Voltron as we are. There will be several fleets. If we go now, all we’ll do is follow Takashi.” A grim silence fell over everyone, as they realized she was right. “We didn’t tell you because we knew you’d react this way. It’s best that we prepare beforehand.” 

Kolivan turned to her. “The moment we learned of his plan to lure you, I had some of our scouts find your families and move them to a safer location. Your loved ones are safe away from Earth. If you wish, you can even contact them.” He said calmly. 

Pidge was having none of that. “Safe, or not, you should have told us! I’m getting real sick of your damn secrecy!” 

Kuroko stood up and walked over to Pidge. “You need to calm down.” She said sternly. 

“Don’t think you can order me around just because the Black Lion choose you!” She yelled at the taller woman. “You do not lead Voltron!” 

“And this is why we can’t form it.” Kuroko’s words slapped her harder than any hand could. “Moreover, you must remember how new all of you are to this. Each Blade has spent a lifetime training for this cause. They are basically the Galran equivalent of Ninja. Would you expect a Shinobi to tell you all their secrets just because you’re on the same side? Trust goes both ways, Pidge. And I’m sure your parents taught you the importance of respecting your seniors.” Pidge looked down, but her anger had not been subdued. “I don’t like it any more than you, but there’s nothing that can be done right now. You want to save Earth? Try harder. You’re stuck with me- whether we like it or not. So suck it up. If you want to be privy to all the information that the Blade can provide, then you need to prove that you are worthy of it, it’s as simple as that.” Kuroko turned to walk away, her eyes did not meet Kolivan’s as she left the room. 

It was the slap from reality that they all needed. Not a word was said the rest of the morning. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Oddly enough, their training improved. Allura had all of them go up against multiple gladiator bots at once. They would have to formulate a proper strategy to win. Keith had been barking out orders left and right, and that had gotten them this far. 

“Pidge! Back up Lance!” He called out, as Lance was being bombarded with attacks that were too much for his long-distance fighting style. 

Kuroko had been going toe-to-toe with a large bot. She was trying hard to keep her distance from it, but had been pushed on to defensive. She found herself against a wall. To her left she could see Hunk blasting away at a small force of bots surrounding his pedestal. Her opponent brought down his large weapon, and she blocked with the rod of her naginata. “Keith! We need to regroup!” She grunted loudly as she attempted to push it back. “We’re spread out to thin! We need a better strategy!” 

Keith began attacking the large bot from the other side so Kuroko could join him. “Ok, since you’re so smart, what would you do?” He almost growled, as he got thrown back. 

“We can’t take this big guy one-on-one. So let’s both hits him with all we’ve got!” She lunged forward and caught the bot’s weapon with her curved blade. “Now!” And Keith began tearing it up with his sword. When the bot fell, she grinned. “See? Now let’s back up Hunk, he can’t hold them off for long.” 

Working together, the team made quick work of the bots. While everyone was congratulating each other on a job well done, Kuroko noticed an extra person standing in the door, wearing a proud smile. She sighed. Allura walked up to the group grinning. “So, do you think you’re ready to form Voltron?” She asked. 

Keith smiled. “Yeah. But everyone’s pretty tired, so let’s try tomarrow, ok? Wouldn’t want to push ourselves too hard and then be too exhausted to fight.” He said with a smile. 

“A valid point, Keith.” She nodded. “I’m a bit impressed that you and Kuroko shared tactics like that though. That could prove useful in a right battle. Hm? That’s odd, wasn’t she just here?” Allura looked around and sure enough, Kuroko had left. 

“She’s probably just tired. She does tend to retire early.” Coran offered. 

“You’re right, Coran. She’s probably getting ready for bed.” Soon after, everyone began to part ways and relax for the night. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

That night, Kuroko had turned in early once again. It wasn’t that she was tired, just drained from her mental woes. Memories had fogged her mind, and she had been hallucinating the ghost of her brother. It was starting to take it’s toll. 

_“Everything ok, sis? You seem down. The other’s getting to you again?” His smile was bright and warm, as always._

_“I’m fine.” She lied. The dried tears on her face said everything._

_He sat down next to her on the stone steps. “You can tell me. I won’t tease you if you want to cry.” Even as a child, Takashi was gentle._

_“I don’t want to cry. I want to kill them.” She pouted. “But that’s frowned upon.” They spoke solely in Japanese when they were alone. It was like a secret code just for them._

_“You should ask Matron about anger management classes.” He offered._

_“Taka… Am I holding us back?” she asked, her face between her knees._

_“What? Why would you think that?” He was surprised._

_“That’s what everyone says.” She said softly. “No one wants to adopt me because of my attitude. And you won’t accept any couple who won’t take me too.”_

_He leaned closer to her. “Sis, please don’t feel sad. We’ll find a family, both of us.” He smiled patiently._

_“No we won’t, don’t lie.” She said curtly with a pout. “I don’t want them. Any of them. I just want our old life. I want to go back to Japan. I hate it here. I hate America. I want to go home.”_

_He held her close. “Ayane. This is home, when we are together.” He tilted his face to meet hers. “That’s why we have to stay together. We are each other’s home.” Tears invaded her face, and he wasn’t too far behind. “No matter where we are, if it’s six thousand miles, or six thousand lightyears. So long as we are together, we will always be home.” They held each other tightly as they cried, silently praying to a deaf god for things to get better soon._

“Kuroko?” A voice came from the other said of the door. “May I enter?” 

“Sure.” She answered in a sore voice. 

Coran entered the room, which was dimly lit. Kuroko sat on her bed with her arms in her lap as she faced the other direction, trying desperately to cease her tears. “I wanted to check on you,” He said kindly. “Are you alright?” He waited in the doorway for her to answer. 

Finally, she sighed. “No.” It was a simple word, but admitting it felt like removing the weight of the world. Her shoulders shook, as did her breath. And the tears finally stopped their pointless struggle and flowed freely. 

“Do you need a hug?” Such a simple offer, but one full of meaning. Kuroko turned her head to look at him and simply nodded, trying her best not to look like a pouty child. He sat on the bed next her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Almost instantaneously, she collapsed into his lap and began to openly sob loudly. He just rubbed her back and hummed gently. 

Eventually, after what felt like hours, she sat up, sniffed and then smiled at him. “Thank you, Coran. I guess I really needed that.” Her voice was strained and weak, but still showed her gratitude. 

“I could tell that were low on spirits.” He said. ‘You know, miss Kuroko, you’re not too different from the Princess.” He said. 

She looked at him with a quizzical expression. “What do you mean?” 

“Well, I don’t know if you’re aware, but Altea, our homeworld, was destroyed by the Galra ten thousand years ago. Shortly after wards, we also lost all the other original Paladins, and King Alfor. Allura had been placed in a cryogenic chamber by her father during that that attack- forcefully I might add. When she awoke, she met your brother and the other new Paladins. By then Altea, and everyone she knew and loved were gone forever. She grieves for them quite often. At first she did so alone. She never let the Paladins know how she felt. But I know. I comfort her as often as I can. But there are always days when it seems that she feels too weak to continue. Nontheless, she never lets the others know. She must remain a paragon of hope for the universe.” He still held Kuroko gently by her shoulder. “You never have to feel alone, Kuroko. If you want to cry, then cry. I won’t lie. It never gets easy. If anything, it only gets harder. But crying helps to alleviate the stress. And it also expels toxins from your body. Mostly salts, at anyrate, if you need to borrow my lap again, please don’t hesitate to call. I would be more than happy to help.” He gave her a kind smile. 

She smiled back, and laughed lightly. “Thanks. I’ll be sure to remember that.” 

“Well what sort of man would I be if I let ladies cry alone?” Coran said proudly. 

Kuroko laughed again. “Funny you should say that. 

“How so?” He asked, tilting his head. 

“Oh, nothing. You just reminded me of an old show I used to watch, that’s all.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, so sorry for the extended wait! Last weekend there was a birthday party that took place at my home, and I had to make and decorate two batches of cupcakes with Dragon Ball Z designs, the weekend before then was another Birthday Party, where I made a cake, and this weekend I got sick due to stress. So I’ve been quite busy, and very tired. Not to mentioned, my live-in-boyfriend and I have been taking turns playing Breath Of The Wild. I didn’t feel like writing, and I was distracted by an awesome game… So, again, sorry. At any rate, I don’t have a preview right now, but I will add one once I do. I try to update every Sunday, but I won’t make promises I can’t keep… Also, sorry if this chapter has any grammar or spelling errors. I didn’t proof read it, because I feel like shit, and I forced out the last 4 pages. 
> 
> Final notes, I hope you appreciate the Black Butler reference at the end, because I don’t know where it came from. And as for the “six thousand miles” bit, I googled the distance between Japan and America and read this from the first thing that came up “The air travel (bird fly) shortest distance between Japan and United States is 10,173 km= 6,321 miles. If you travel with an airplane (which has average speed of 560 miles) from Japan to United States, It takes 11.29 hours to arrive.” So yeah. 
> 
> #Coran is best pillow. XD
> 
> Also, I realized that I forgot to link that video by Erin Kelly, So here it is: [Tribute to Voltron Mothers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W7RIh4aL2s&index=51&list=FLX9umVGoyJyrBFL-BcYYqkA)
> 
> Ok! I have the preview up! It's short, and this isn't the very beginning of the chapter. It's the end of the first scene actually. But that's just because I wanted to tease you with something good enough to convince you to come back for it ^^
> 
> Here goes:
> 
> “I don’t know what to do, Coran. We’ve already lost another Paladin, and I just know this is going to get so much worse.” Tears began to fill her eyes. “I don’t know how father did it… Could he have just send them out- even if he knew they’d die?” Her shoulders shook as she began to lose her composure. 
> 
> Coran looked at their reflection in the window before them. “He did actually. And he was there beside them. He knew well that they wouldn’t return. So he fought alongside them. He couldn’t find it in his heart to send them out alone. Even though he knew he would be leaving you.” He caressed her cheek gently. “Allura, I will never get easy. But it’s times where it is hardest to hold on, that you must be stronger than ever. That doesn’t mean you can’t cry. Your father did. Especially after…” His voice became a little weaker. 
> 
> “Coran…” Allura looked up at him, her eyes large and reflecting the stars of space. He faked a smile, but his eyes showed pure sadness. 
> 
> “It’s ok to cry. It doesn’t make you weak. But we must never lose hope. I believe in you Allura. You have your father’s heart. And that is what makes you strong.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her long ear. 
> 
> “Thank you, Coran.” Allura smiled. “I will stay strong. After all, we are the legacy of Altea.” She looked back to the stars. “We can’t let this defeat us.” 
> 
> **Chapter 4**
> 
> **Reunion**
> 
> _“ May our reunion be not a finding but a sweet collision of destinies!”_
> 
> _― Jerry Spinelli, Love, Stargirl_


	5. Reunion

**Chapter 4**

**Reunion**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_“ May our reunion be not a finding but a sweet collision of destinies!”_

_― Jerry Spinelli, Love, Stargirl_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

That morning the Paladins were notified that they would arrive to their destination later that day. 

“We will arrive in about two hours, so prepare yourselves for arrival.” Kolivan addressed them on the bridge. 

“And where, exactly, will we be?” Lance demanded with his arms crossed. 

“The Blade of Marmoa’s main base. He said that days ago, idiot.” Keith rolled his eyes. 

“Yes, but _where_ is that?” Lance said louder. “And don’t call me an idiot, moron!” 

“Like they’d tell you!” Keith yelled back. 

Kolivan glanced at Kuroko, who was shaking her head. “Are they always like this?” She asked Allura. 

“Typically, they’re much worse. This is quite tame for them.” The princess said with a sigh. 

“I can’t wait…” She groaned. When she looked back at them they were still arguing. 

“At least I trim my hair, Mullet-head!” Lance yelled. 

“Hey, what’s wrong with my mullet?” Keith glared at the other man. 

Kuroko stepped up to them grabbed each by the ear and threw them to the ground. Both made simultaneous grunts of pain. “Next one of you to talk, look at, or breath in the general direction of the other will be made to run eighteen laps around the perimeter of the castle halls- in full armor and with weights on his back. I will _not_ tolerate this kind of behavior among grown men.” She crossed her arms. “It seems my brother was too soft on you. From now on, all childish behavior like this will be punished. I’m certain your princess would agree.” She looked over to Allura, as if to ask permission. 

“Actually… Yes. I do agree with that. You might as well get stamina training during your punishments.” The princess added with a smile. 

“My thoughts exactly, it’s decided then. And if this continues to be a problem, we’ll perform these exorcises as a team. You’ll learn your lessons faster when everyone reminds you to.” Hunk and Pidge gave Lance and Keith looks. Hunk seemed worried, but Pidge was smiling evilly. 

“Why is Shiro’s replacement an evil witch?” Lance whispered. 

Kuroko bent down to meet his face. “The term you are looking for, McClain, is “bitch”. And just for that, why don’t you clean the bathrooms later?” She gave a cute smile and walked away. “So prepare for arrival already, we won’t wait all day. Unless you’d rather stay on the ship. I mean, that’s an option too.” She shrugged and left the room. 

Keith and Lance made a point not to look at each other as they stormed off in opposite directions, followed shortly by Pidge and Hunk. Kolivan looked at Princess Allura. “Your Paladins are nowhere near ready to face Lotor.” He said sternly. 

“Honestly, I’m surprised we managed to defeat Zarkon…” She sighed. 

“It was a fluke- made only possible by your former Black Paladin.” He noted as she turned to face the window. 

“And what of Kuroko? Do you think she can replicate that fluke?” There was worry in her tone. 

“No.” He answered curtly. Allura’s spirit dropped with her shoulders. “Kuroko does not deal in flukes. The results she has given me are solid. She has re-trained an entire squadron of my men. Now none of them make mistakes. She follows orders to the note. Nothing she does is a fluke.” 

Allura looked at Kolivan. “Then perhaps she is what Voltron needed. She’s right, Shiro was soft… That was what made him a good leader. But now the other Paladins need someone who will remind them of the severity of the situation. Honestly, I don’t feel like any of us are ready for this. I just hope that she can help us.” Allura’s voice was solemn, her arms remained crossed as she seemed to lose herself in thought. 

“For the sake of the universe, we share that hope, princess.” Kolivan’s tone was serious as ever. At that, he left the room, leaving the princess alone with Coran. 

”Princess?” Coran, who up until now had been completely silent, set a gentle, reassuring hand on her shoulder. 

“I don’t know what to do, Coran. We’ve already lost another Paladin, and I just know this is going to get so much worse.” Tears began to fill her eyes. “I don’t know how father did it… Could he have just send them out- even if he knew they’d die?” Her shoulders shook as she began to lose her composure. 

Coran looked at their reflection in the window before them. “He did actually. And he was there beside them. He knew well that they wouldn’t return. So, he fought alongside them. He couldn’t find it in his heart to send them out alone. Even though he knew he would be leaving you.” He caressed her cheek gently. “Allura, I will never get easy. But it’s times where it is hardest to hold on, that you must be stronger than ever. That doesn’t mean you can’t cry. Your father did. Especially after…” His voice became a little weaker. 

“Coran…” Allura looked up at him, her eyes large and reflecting the stars of space. He faked a smile, but his eyes showed pure sadness. 

“It’s ok to cry. It doesn’t make you weak. But we must never lose hope. I believe in you Allura. You have your father’s heart. And that is what makes you strong.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her long ear. 

“Thank you, Coran.” Allura smiled. “I will stay strong. After all, we are the legacy of Altea.” She looked back to the stars. “We can’t let this defeat us.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Once they had properly entered the base area, Kuroko was the first on the ground. She waited only for Kolivan and remained standing at attention until he dismissed her. He would be ensuring that the castle was well stocked in food that wasn’t green goo, as well as deciding which operatives would be joining the crew- with Allura’s permission on each decision. 

“Hey, Boss?” Kuroko jokingly addressed her commander. “Make sure you get some eggs. I miss eggs.” He just laughed at her request and waved her off. Kuroko practically _skipped_ off to the residential area. 

“What’s got her so excited?” Lance asked with a huff. 

Hunk looked at him from across the bridge. “This is the Blade’s main base. I’m guessing this is where a lot of the members live when they’re off-duty. She’s probably happy to be home.” He attempted an explanation. 

“Home?” Lance scowled. “Home is on Earth.” 

“For us maybe. But what about for those of us who have nothing to return to? I’ve seen her back on Earth. She was miserable. Obviously, something about space has changed her. I get the feeling it’s a good thing too.” Lance just stared out the window as Hunk spoke. He watched the many Marmoa soldiers running about the area, doing all sorts of things. Ships were preparing for missions in the hanger, some were returning home, many were off in the distance training. But what surprised him was the sheer amount of them. And so many of the Galra appeared to be civilians, which was more than just a little strange to him. He even saw what looked like a couple having a picnic under a tree. While the on-duty Galra acted strictly, those not in uniform seemed to just be going about their daily lives. The castle ship was under a cloaking device that made it appear to be a large transport ship, so nothing about their presence would seem out of place here. And yet, Kuroko ran off to the residential area. She wore no Galra armor. Here, she didn’t even try to hide her species, she was even still wearing the Altean uniform Coran had given her. What’s more was that many of the Galra she ran into seemed friendly with her. They were laughing and slapping each other’s back like old friends. The whole thing just confused him. 

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Coran walked up to the bridge and stood next to Lance. “Kolivan tells me this base is right under the nose of the empire. You see how al the soldiers are wearing Empire armor? The whole thing is a ruse. Everyone here is actually with the Blade. Apparently, this planet is too small and far away from any main facilities that no one ever comes to inspect it. They’ll stage inspections from their own members just so no one notices anything strange.” He explained as armored Galra loaded supplies into the hanger. Lance noticed that even Allura’s presence seemed nothing unusual. Even the off-duty members acted as if she was just another visitor. 

“It looks like the Garrison…” Lance said softly as he continued to watch the activity below. 

“Say, where’s Pidge and Keith?” Coran asked them. 

Hunk looked up from the piece of machinery he was working on. “Keith went out to learn more about the Blade, and Pidge wasn’t far behind him. She’s probably bugging some poor technician while fawning over Galran tech.” He smiled brightly. “Some guy gave me this thing,” He held up the weirdest looking contraption he’d ever seen. “Said if I could get it working again, I could keep it.” 

“What does it even do?” Lance asked him. 

“According to that guy, it translates written text. It’s basically a Rosetta Stone.” Hunk answered with a big grin. 

“Hey, that could come in handy. Maybe Pidge can help if you’re having trouble.” Lance said before looking back at the scene below him. 

Hunk sat down the tech and walked over to Lance. “Hey buddy, I’ve known you since we were kids, I can tell when something’s eating you. What’s up?” Coran watched the two and figured he should leave them be, so he quietly left. 

Lance shrugged. “I don’t know… It’s Kuroko. Something about her just rubs me wrong.” She said with a pout. 

“She replaced Shiro.” Lance almost winced. 

“Ok, it’s not _just_ that! I Just don’t like her… She’s rude, she keeps secrets, and she’s bitchy as hell! Not to mention bossy…” He crossed his arms. 

“Well… If you had to be in her shoes, how would you act?” Hunk asked. 

“What? What do you mean?” Lance turned to face Hunk directly. 

“Just think about Lance. She’s not exactly in the best position right now. You can’t expect her to play nice. And besides.” Hunk sighed. “This is a war, you know…” He spoke softly. “We need someone to be hard on us. Else we’ll just get the quiznack knocked out of us.” 

“This is the part where Keith would say you’re not using that word correctly… But I think I get what you mean… I just hope she’s not as bad as Iverson.” Lance and Hunk both shuddered. 

“Yeah…” Hunk laughed a bit. “Everyone hated that guy.” 

“That guy hated himself!” Lance laughed. “I miss home.” 

“Me too buddy.” Hunk sighed again and looked out the window with him. “Me too.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They were to spend three days at the base, and eventually each of them had ventured out to see how Galra lived. Hunk had re configured his new device to translate anything into English, and decided to reverse-engineer one for everyone. Pidge, of course, had more than a few ideas on how to improve it. After everyone had one, he had decided to check out the market. He had even picked up a few cookbooks and studied them well. 

“Hey, Kolivan, is threskee like, the Galran equivalent to brownies?” He asked randomly on the second night. 

“What is _brownies_ ” The Galran ninja asked back. 

“Oh, they’re these sweet chocolate squares that are kinda like cake, only more spongy.” He made a square shape with his hands to demonstrate. 

Kolivan cocked his head slightly to the side. “Perhaps.. I’d certainly say they’re spongy. Though I don’t know what chocolate is, threskee are made with a sweet dough and filled with fruit paste. Children love them, I am not so fond of things that are overly sweet.” He explained. 

“I see… Ok, so what is gor?” Hunk continued to ask Kolivan about various Galran foods until Keith entered the room. 

“Hey, has anyone seen Kuroko? I haven’t seen her since she took off yesterday morning.” He said while he looked around the room. Pidge was wearing something that looked like a scouter from Dragon Ball Z and reading a book, and Lance appeared to be day dreaming. 

Kolivan answered the question after everyone else had shaken their heads. “No doubt she went to her provisional apartment in the downtown area. You can visit her if you like.” 

“She has an apartment here?” Pidge asked. 

“Many do, if they have no homes elsewhere. Sheria can show you. She’s waiting outside the ship as a guard.” He explained before looking back at his tablet. 

Keith began out the door. “I wanted to discuss something with her. Which one is Sheria?” He asked. 

“She will be on the right.” Kolivan stated without looking up. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Keith found himself staring at a door with a door mat before it that had a cat sewn into it. “I’m going to assume, this is it.” He said as he looked at the ironic mat. 

“Kuroko really likes to play with the fact that many Galra are cat-like… I’ll see you back at the ship when you return.” Sheria waved before setting off again. And Keith knocked on the door. 

And then he knocked again. 

And again once more. 

He was about to knock a third time when he heard someone from the other side yell. “Answer the door already!” 

And then the door opened. And a Galra was standing there. Keith nearly stepped back in surprise. “Oh! You are one of the Paladins! Sorry for keeping you. Please, come in.” He had a shockingly kind voice for a Galra, and was clearly not much older than Keith. He was just as purple, but was definitely one of the more fluffy Galra- complete with a tail and a tuft of fur on his forehead. Keith stared at the shirt he was wearing. It was designed like a kimono, but what really got his attention was the patch that had been sewn in. It was a cute kitty face. “Kuroko is…” He peeked into the other room to see her wrapped up in a fluffy blanket cocoon. “Completely asleep…” He stared for a moment before turning back to Keith. 

“And you are?” Keith looked at him suspiciously. 

“Oh, I’m Jarian. She, never told you about me?” Keith shook his head. “Oh, well… I’m her… Well, I’m her boyfriend.” He said with a deep purple blush. 

Keith’s eyes widened a bit. “Oh.” Was all he said. 

An awkward moment passed between them. “You weren’t hoping to be her boy-“

“No!” Keith interrupted and immediately started shaking his hands and head. “Nope, not at all. I barely know her. I was just a bit stunned was all… Not because you’re a Galra, or anything, but because I can’t believe she has a boyfriend. And then, I just didn’t know how to respond to that.” He looked down. “Anyway, I actually just needed to talk to her-“

“I’m up, I’m up.” Kuroko stumbled into the room and yawned. She wore a dark blue tank top and a pair of baggy black shorts. She then plopped down into a chair, straddling its back rest. “What do you want?” She demanded, sleepily. 

“Umm… I just wanted to talk to you... About Voltron.” He began. 

“I figured it’d be that or my brother. What’s up?” 

“You’re wrong about the Black Lion. I thought about it, and it can’t be DNA. The Lion’s choose their Paladins by deciding if a person is worthy of being a Paladin.” He explained. 

“So you woke me up to tell me that I’m worthy?” She seemed annoyed. 

“No. I came here to tell you that I support you. Look, none of us are happy about this. To be honest, I was completely against the idea of simply replacing Shiro. We’d even tried simply switching out Lions. The Black Lion only responded to me. Then Lotor attacked, and Blue kicked Lance out, forcing him to pilot Red, and then Allura seemed to be able to pilot Blue. But after you showed up, everything went back to normal, save for you standing where he was.” 

“Good.” Kuroko said curtly. “The lack of color coordination would have driven me to violence…” Keith just looked up at her with a worried expression. “I’m not joking.” 

Jarian held up his hand. “She actually means that she would have begun to stab things… She stabbed me once for mismatching socks.” He said with an embarrassed blush. 

Kuroko patted him on the shoulder. “Sweetie, stay out of this.” She said kindly. “Anyway, so what are you getting at Keith?” 

“As much as no one wants to like it, I honestly believe that we need you. None of us really knew each other when we started out. And honestly, I don’t know how Shiro put up with us all this time. But he did. And... He didn’t leave without a contingency plan… He had wanted me to lead Voltron. I didn’t want to. I still don’t want to.” Keith shook his head and spoke softly. 

“Keith. If that’s what Takashi wanted, I have to respect it.” She said sternly. Keith looked back up to her. “But I also have to respect your desires to not want it. So I have an idea.” She leaned forward on the chair, tipping it a bit. “We should work together. They’ll trust you better than me. And you know them better. Plus, I doubt you guys got this far without any practical skills in tactics.” She gave him a smile. “So we’ll do this together. As far as anyone on the outside knows, I’ll be the leader by default of being Black Paladin. But the five of us will know that no important decision is made without your say-so. Earth has a phrase about right-hand guys, right? Honestly, I think it was planned this way.” Kuroko said with a laugh. 

Keith smiled. “I think I can live with that.” 

“And Keith? If you ever just want to talk, we can.” She said softly. “About Takashi, I mean. Everyone’s grieving, I can tell. But out of everyone other than me, you were the closest to him. Keith, he’d never shut up about you. I know we didn’t know each other very well back then, but the memory of my brother is what patches me into this team. And a wound can’t heal if the knife is still inside. Talk to me. When you feel like it. Just not in the middle of the night, ok? I’ve ripped off arms of saps who thought to wake me from a nightmare.” She spoke casually. “It’s true, ask anyone.” 

“Noted… And thanks.” Keith said as he stood up. “I’ll head back now.” 

“Ok, I’ll be up there first thing in the morning.” She said, before standing up too. 

“Allura said we’re leaving at noon.” Keith walked to the door. 

“Kolivan had better put eggs on that supplies list, or heads will roll.” She walked back to her bed and flopped back down. Keith and Jarian both laughed as he stepped out the door. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The next day Kolivan and Allura introduced everyone to three Blade soldiers that would be joining them. Of course, they couldn’t see their faces and had no way of knowing which was who, but that wasn’t the point. “A fourth will be joining us in a moment.” 

As if on cue a Galra man who didn’t wear his mask walked up to the foot of the entrance ramp carrying a single bag. He waved casually at them. 

Keith smiled. “It’s Jarian.” 

“You met him last night when you visited Kuroko, I see.” He turned around to address the others. “Jarian is the son of the late Commander Thace. He is one of our best, and will be joining us.” 

At that moment Kuroko walked up grinning ear to ear. “Ok, why are you so happy?” Hunk asked her. 

“Because, I have brought joy with me.” Everyone looked at her in a confused way- then she held up a black and white cat. “This is Segi. He is probably the sweetest kitty in the entire universe, and Allura has given me permission to bring him along!” The fluffball was purring loudly as she set him on her shoulder. 

Jarian laughed. “Well, there wouldn’t be anyone at home to take care of him. And besides that, he is quite docile. Usually, he hangs around the base befriending everyone.” He reached over and lightly scratched the cat’s ear. 

“Where in the universe, did you pick up a cat?” Lance asked her. 

“Earth. I brought him with me when I left.” She said casually as she picked up her bag and walked onto the ramp. 

“Wait, you’ve had a cat with you while traveling through space?” Pidge asked her. “And hang on... Left? How did you leave Earth? How did you even get out here?” Suddenly there were many questions that no one had really thought of. 

“I left to find Takashi, actually… I knew he had to be out there somewhere.” A deep sadness was obvious in her voice. “I just couldn’t shake the feeling.” Everyone gave a knowing glance to Pidge. 

“I can get that… But how did you get off?” She walked up to Kuroko. 

“Oh, I just stole a Garrison ship.” Pidge almost choked. “I got about as far as Kerberos and found this abandoned Galran Scout craft.” She continued. 

“With a cat.” Pidge crossed her arms. 

“With a cat.” Kuroko smiled and Segi mewed. “Anyway,” She began to rub his neck, “I ended up getting pretty far before I ran out of gas and crashed on some weird planet. At least the locals were friendly though. The Galra showed up before I could finish my repairs. Segi stayed with my new friends when they took me. I picked him up later after I had officially joined the Blade.” 

“I feel like there’s a huge chunk of this story missing.” Hunk added. 

“Well yeah, it’d take forever to tell everything. That’s just the short version.” She sat the cat on the ground as the ramp closed. “I take it we’re ready to go?” 

“Ready as we’ll ever be!” Coran asked, almost stepping on the cat, who responded to the intrusion by looking up at him and meowing. “Well hello there, Mr. Cat. When did you get here?” 

Kuroko giggled. “His name is Segi, He will be joining us.” 

“Wonderful! I do love cats! Though I worry for the mice...” Coran played with his beard. 

“Don’t worry. Segi is a weird cat. He may chase and play with them, but I doubt he’ll really attack. And besides, those are some pretty smart mice… I don’t think there will be a problem. Now, if you have any hair ties, or literally anything with a feather, then he will totally attack it. And he has a habit of batting around anything that even remotely resembles a ball.” She explained. “Come on Segi, let’s go to my room.” She clicked her tongue a few times as she walked off with her bags. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Later that night Kuroko and Jarian were sharing her bed. She laid on his chest, holding him tightly as he stroked her hair. 

“And you’ve told none of them?” He asked calmly. 

“No… How could I? They would never believe me.” She sighed. 

“But don’t they deserve to know? He may be your brother, but he’s also their leader.” His voice sounded grim. 

“Ri… Don’t you realize how crazy it will sound? For all I know, it was just a hallucination.” She buried her face more into his bare chest. 

“But you said this happened when you were with the Black Lion. It’s possible that he’s trapped within it somehow.” He gently scratched behind her ear. 

“I don’t know Ri. I just don’t know…” She lifted her face out of his furry purple chest. “But… No, it’s stupid…” 

He leaned his chest up to look at her. “What? Go on, you can tell me.” 

She sighed again and sat up to move to the side of the bed. A long few minutes passed before she finally spoke. “Takashi and I… Have a bond. It’s not unlike the bond with the Lions. I can feel him, Ri. That’s how I knew to look for him. I _knew_. He was alive. And I had to find him.” She looked at him. “While I was stranded on that planet… I felt something within me change. The bond felt… Weaker. It came back to me double its original strength. I heard his voice within my own mind. I felt his arms around me in a protective embrace. And while on this castle he’s… Everywhere. He’s everywhere, Ri!” She dropped her head into hands. “It’s driving me insane! Because my mind knows that he’s gone.” Her breathing became heavy as she began to sob. “I _know_ he’s gone. But I feel him here. Through my bond with him… I… I feel him. And so… I find it hard to make myself really believe that he’s dead. I can’t accept it.” Her voice and hands were shaky. 

“Is that why you won’t touch his Bayard?” Jarian accused. 

“Yes.” She tried to calm her breath. “The Black Lion is his to command… I’m just filling in.” She explained. She looked back at him. “What would you say I do?” 

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her, then kissed her neck. “Your best. You aren’t him. But you are amazing in your own way. I know you can do this, Ayane. He knows it too.” 

She leaned into him and hummed. “With you here, I think I can. Or at the very least try.” She looked back up at him. “I missed you so much.” She smiled. 

“I missed you too.” He chuckled a bit. 

“What?” She laughed. 

“I still remember how we met. I thought you were going to kill me. I never would have imagined us becoming lovers.” They laughed together. 

“Life is strange. And it always catches you off guard. I never expected to find the perfect guy on an alien ship of the race that kidnapped my brother.” She shrugged and pinned him back to the bed for more cuddling. 

“Touché.” And they laughed again. They spent much of the night like this. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I finished this one on time! At anyrate, you’ll be seeing more of Jarian and Segi! Jarian is actually loosely inspired by my wonderful dorky boyfriend, Jeffrey. And Segi is literally the cat I live with. I’ll be playing around with him a bit, and may end up altering his character from scene to scene. But for the most part, he is our fluffy kitty! I have pictures of him on my Imgur, but we warned of potential spoilers there ^^ Segi is actually the Japanese word for “Justice”. I didn’t name him BTW. He is actually a friend’s cat, but we’re looking after him because of our friend’s living situation. 
> 
> Also, sorry if anything seemed rushed. I try to add filler in between the scenes that I’ve planned out, but somehow it just doesn’t seem to fit as well as I thought… Regardless, I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Also! Now that Season 3 is officially out, I can confirm that I will be diverging from the official plot by a lot. So yeah… And expect more character designs! I draw during my spare time at work and color it later. 
> 
> Now, before I go, here’s your heads-up! The next few chapters will be told entirely in flashbacks! Also, feel free to leave comments below! I’m dying to here people’s thoughts… Also, I’m still stumped for names, so feel free to leave name suggestions! I have quite a few non-Galra designs that still have no names, but I will name them later. 
> 
> One last thing: The next chapter may not come until the week after next. I will be attending a convention, and have a panel to plan. So, I apologize in advance for that. 


	6. Journey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _“ Hope is like the sun, which, as we journey toward it, casts the shadow of our burden behind us.”_
> 
>  
> 
> _― Samuel Smiles_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

There was loud beeping everywhere, Ayane looked around frantically realizing that there was no way she could fix the situation. To do that, she’d have to be able to read alien squiggles. So she instead scooped up her cat in her arms and hid themselves in a containment compartment. “Not gonna lie, Seigi, I’m actually surprised we got this far.” She was then thrusted against the side of the compartment, which had her lose consciousness, as the alien ship crashed to an alien planet. 

When she woke, she was surrounded by weird looking alien people- and the cat was sitting on her chest purring like nothing happened. “Who… Um… Where… Owie…” She sat up and rubbed her head, unsure which question to ask first. 

“You are no Galra.” A sweet and young voice said. It’s owner was a pretty alien with light purple skin. She had no hair, but two long tendrils hung from the sides of her head and rested on her shoulders. Her hands were strangely large, Ayane noticed. The woman touched her forehead- surprising the Japanese woman with her gentleness and the softness of her skin. “Is it normal for your kind to be so warm?” Ayane nodded, lost in the woman’s emerald eyes. She seemed humanoid, despite her oval-shaped head, and it was strange how someone so odd seemed so familiar to her own idea of human. 

“I think she hit her head.” This new voice belonged to a taller one with green skin. He had no tendrils, but there was a weird bulging swirl from the top of his head. “She seems concussed.” 

“Pr-probably… Ow… Ok, yeah I hit my head. Not sure if I’m concussed though.” Ayane had her hand make a map of her head as she spoke, quickly finding a spot that held a bump and was extremely painful. When she brought her hand back to her face, Ayane groaned at the sight of red liquid. “Ok, signs are pointing to very likely concussed.” 

“What is that color?” The woman asked. 

“Blood. Mine is red. What’s a Galra?” Everyone gasped and looked surprised. “What?” 

“How can you not know the Galra? They control much of the universe. Soon they’ll be here for us too…” The man seemed worried. 

“Sorry, where I’m from we don’t have very good space travel. The farthest we can go is still within our own Solar System. No one from Earth has ever seen a non-human intelligent race.” Ayane explained. “So, no, I wouldn’t know what Galra are. I did assume whatever race that built that craft was not a friendly one. I found it near the remains of an Earth vessel near Kereboros- three of our explorers had made it there but never returned. There was someone aboard that ship, but they just turned out to be a trio of drones. They were wasting my time.” Now that Ayane was fully to her senses, she could see that there was actually only one other person in the room. They were a tan colored alien whose tendrils were wrapped up into a complex bun. They were hunched over, and seemed elderly. At that moment, they were preparing a puce colored salve. It was then that Ayane noticed the heavy burns on her left arm. Seigi sat up and looked at her with a cute meow. 

The younger two looked at her, completely shocked. “You… Commandeered a Galran space cruiser? That is… Amazing! You must be a warrior back on your homeworld!” The male said, seeming proud in some way. 

“Warrior? No. I was a waitress though. Also a cashier and a maid.” She reached to Seigi and began to scratch his fur on his neck- eliciting a loud purr from the fluffball. No emotion or shock came from her voice. 

“So… You worked only domestic jobs? But then how do you have the strength and knowledge to defeat Galran drones and pilot their ships?” The woman asked. 

“Hey, it takes a lot of strength and stamina to work three jobs. Also I was fueled entirely by rage given to me from working customer service my entire life. As for pilot skill, my entire family has worked with machines meant for space flight. To me, it’s like second nature. Admittedly, I may not be the best pilot, I at least know what I’m doing. And considering I don’t read Galran, I’m actually surprised I got this far… Speaking of which, where am I? And how may I address you three?” Ayane asked them. 

“This is Feetia. My name is Gaarit, and this is my sister, Harritia. The elder woman is our grandmother, Meritho. She is the town doctor.” The man introduced his family and turned back to her. “Your… Companion is unharmed, and has not left your side… What is it?” 

Ayane held up the fluffy kitty. “This is Seigi. He’s my pet cat.” She set him to the floor and sat on the bed. “I thank you greatly for your hospitality. I’d hate to think how we’d be if you hadn’t found us. Oh! I almost forgot to introduce myself. My name is Ayane Shirogane. I left Earth to find my brother, Takashi. He was one of the explorers that disappeared. He was the pilot.” 

The woman, Harritia, hung her head. “If you found that cruiser where he disappeared, then he is a prisoner of the Galra now. They would soon take your world too… That means that they will find us as well…” A great sadness came to Harritia as her shoulders began to shake in fear. Gaarit placed his hand on her shoulder to comfort her. 

“Then I know where I need to go.” Ayane stood up- only to immediately fall. Gaarit caught her in his free arm. “Ah… Hate it when my head does that… Must have a different air pressure here.” She held her hand to her head. Her vision had gone black as blood rushed to her head and she suddenly felt cold. She sat back down. 

“I would not recommend going against the Galra.” Gaarit advised. “They are dangerous. And you are far too weak.” 

“Then I’ll build my strength and ready a plan.” Ayane said sternly. 

“You… You are risking everything for one person?” Harritia looked at her with concern filled eyes. 

“Takashi is my twin brother. Our parents passed on when we were younger. Everything I do is for him. I have no other purpose. Without Takashi… What am I? I don’t care what happens in the end. So long as we are together, anywhere can be home. Even if I never see Earth again, I will be happy so long as I have my brother.” Her resolve shone brightly in her eyes and voice. She made the decision a long time ago- and it was too late to turn back now. 

“You are quite brave. But I admire your determination. I hope that it doesn’t cost you your life.” Harritia gave Ayane a sad smile. 

“If it does, than it will be my own carelessness. I alone will be at fault for that.” Meritho walked over to Ayane and began to apply a wet rag to her arm and began to clean it. Ayane watched carefully. “Should I be alarmed if I don’t feel it?” 

Meritho looked up at her. “Your skin cells here have died. This salve that I have made should help.” She then dipped her hand into the puce- colored paste and began to apply it to the third-degree burn. As she rubbed it in, Ayane felt a tingling sensation throughout the wound. It was like the cold sensation one had if they put toothpaste on their arm, and then was warm- almost hot. Ayane continued to watch as the elder alien treated her burn. By the time she was done, Ayane noticed that the other two had left. “You should get some sleep, Ayane Shirogane. It would do you well.” 

Ayane nodded in agreement and laid back for comfort. “Thank you, Meritho. I am truly grateful.” She almost instantly drifted into sleep. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

When Ayane awoke the sky had become darker. She still felt tired, but her hunger wouldn’t let her sleep. She found her way outside and noticed an entire community of aliens had gathered together and were sharing meals. She couldn’t help but smile. The village was like a large family, and they all took care of each other. A robust male motioned over for her to join him. When she did he wrapped an arm around her. He had pale green skin and bright red eyes. A single, fat tendril hung down his back and swayed with each movement. 

“Let us greet our guest, Ayane Shirogane! She has barely been with us, but already shows bravery against the Galra!” The man, who was obviously their leader, offered a toast to her. When everyone had settled down he began to apologize. “Forgive my brashness. When you landed, everyone feared that you were Galra. To learn that you took this ship by force is an impressive accomplishment we could only dream of. My name is Ishtiin, my people are the Retorio. We have been running from the Galra most of our lives. No one here has the courage to fight them, and our numbers are too few to be of use to the Emperor. We survive by simply staying out of their way.” He explained. 

“I understand,” Ayane nodded. “There I no shame in fleeing for survival. Especially when you have people to protect. However, I plan to intentionally get captured.” She told him. 

His expression grew darker. “I… Uh… I understand that you are looking for your brother, but I would advise you not to tempt the Galra. They are far too dangerous.” He seemed worried and panicked. 

“I appreciate the advice, but you must know that sacrifices sometimes need to be made to protect others. My brother is all I have left. I don’t care what the Galra do to me, so long as we are together. As twins, the pain of being apart is far worse than any form of torture I could receive.” Ayane gave him a stern look. She wasn’t going to back down. 

He sighed in defeat. “Then let us teach you how to survive in even the worst of conditions. The Retorio are experts at adapting for survival.” 

“Thank you, Ishtiin.” She said with a smile. 

Ishtiin motioned for her to sit down and she did, he then handed her a bowl of stew. “This stew was made from six different animals and nine different plants that we managed to gather today. How do you like it?” He asked. 

Ayane took a sip and made a funny face. “It’s… Odd… But I like it. I suppose it tastes different each time you make it.” She said as she took another bite. 

Ishtiin laughed. “That is does, the recipe is simple since it has no specific ingredients. Do you cook, Ayane Shirogane?” He asked politely. 

“All the time for my brother and I.” She took another spoonful. “I bet I can improve the recipe. I think it would do great with some paprika... It’s good, but it lacks kick. Paprika can be mildly spicy or crazy spicy- depending on how you use it.” 

He smiled. “I see.” 

The night continued peacefully until everyone went to bed. Ayane, however, found herself unable to sleep. She had climbed to the top of a large rock that oversaw the village. She sat and stared out at the night sky, marveling at the beauty. It felt like she could see at least another million extra stars. “I always loved the stars…” She said to herself in Japanese. Stargazing was something the entire Shriogane family loved to do. Ayane had fond memories of watching the stars in silence. 

_“They say that if you are apart from someone you love, you can look to the stars to find them. Earth is small in the grand picture, so you’ll always be seeing the same stars.”_

Remembering those words from her father, Ayane began to cry. She knew that the universe was so largely vast. “I wonder… Taka… Can you see these same stars? Or are you too far away?” She brought a hand to her aching chest and closed her eyes. “I can feel you. Our hearts beat the same. Brother, I will find you. This I promise.” She made her vow to all the stars, suns, and planets in the entire galaxy, using her native launguge. Her resolute determination dried her tears. It was more than just bravery or confidence. Ayane swore an oath. And she intended to keep it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The next morning, Ayane convinced Ishtiin to begin her training. 

“You are not fully healed! I cannot yet train you!” He protested. 

“What point is there in healing if you can’t get stronger? I may not have much time, and I want to ready. I will train regardless of whether or not you will be there to guide me.” She pointed to the rock she watched the stars from the night before. “I will be up there after breakfast to strengthen my injuries. Meet me if you want.” And she walked away. 

Sure enough, when the time came, he showed up. “I would never forgive myself if you were hurt further…”

She smiled. “Thank you, Ishtiin. Now, let me finish my stretches.” She went through a series of light exorcises that would strengthen her injuries and keep her body in shape. After that they set off to the forest where he spent the next two months teaching her the basics of survival and combat. 

“I thought your people hated to fight.” She had teased. 

“Only a fool never prepares for the battles he wishes to avoid.” He said as he took a fighting pose. 

“Wise words, mind if I borrow them?” She mirrored his pose, ready to counter. 

“If you must. Begin!” She lunged forward for an attack, and he made a move to block and catch her, only for Ayane to suddenly change direction and knock him off balance. 

“Who said I was an amateur?” She teased again, only to be immediately knocked onto her own ass. “I still have much to learn.” She said with a s mile as she stood up. “Please, continue to teach me.” She gave her teacher a slight bow and took back her fighting stance. 

Months passed, and Ayane’s burns healed, to be replaced by cuts and bruises. Her training was hard, and she had even broken bones. But she never once complained. Each new failure, each new injury, convinced her to try even harder. Three long months of training passed before she gained the upper hand on her teacher. Even more time passed before the Galra arrived. Unbeknownst to Ayane, she had been training for a full year. 

“Congratulations. You are improving.” Ishtiin gave her a warm alien smile. 

And she bowed in response. “I can only thank my teacher. Thanks to you, I feel confident in my survival skills. I even learned a lot about first aid from Meritho.” She admitted. “I hope to continue this-” Suddenly a booming sound could be heard in the sky. The both of them looked up. The ship darkened the sky by shielding out the sun, Ayane looked to Ishtiin, who nodded solemnly. The Galra had arrived. 

They rushed to town and arrived just in time for the commander to begin demanding an audience with the leader. Everyone was held hostage by 30 guns. Even Ayane and Ishtiin were almost fired upon. “I am the one you seek. What brings you here, Galra commander?” Ishtiin held a prestigious air that would alone prove his position. Ayane had never seen him act so formal. 

The commander pointed to the crashed ship in the distance. “That ship is ours.” He said in a demanding way. 

“You may have it back. We have no use of it.” Ishtin replied calmly. 

The commander’s answer was to slap the chief to the ground. “Where is the pilot? Our records indicate that this ship was stolen, and the sentries assigned to it were found shut down. Where is the traitor hiding among you?” Ayane stepped forward and the crowd gasped. Murmurs were heard as the abrasive commander marched up to the woman. “You aren’t from here.” 

“I came to find my brother. I am the thief you seek.” She stated proudly with her shoulders back. 

“She’s really turning herself in?” 

“Poor child…”

“She must be crazy, standing up to the Galra!” 

“Why would she admit that?” 

The villagers we’re hiding their shock. The commander smiled, his teeth were huge and reminded Ayane of the Big Bad Wolf. “Your brother? A puny hairless whelp like you? They threw him in the pits for entertainment. Wo-uld you like to join him?” He sneered. 

Ayane stood taller. “My name is Ayane Shirogane. I am the twin sister of Takashi Shirogane. You may know of him as Shiro. I will find him, and I will not hesitate to kill any purple assholes that get in my way.” She demanded. 

The commander stiffed. “That name… He really is…” Then he sneered. “Contact the Emperor. I have a surprise for him.” He grinned as he turned to his subordinates. “And shackle her…” He pointed at Ayane. 

“That won’t be necessary. I volunteer myself willingly.” She said proudly. “But only on the condition that these people are left alone.” 

The Galra laughed. “And why would I do that?” 

Ayane gave her sweetest smile and stepped up to the much taller alien. “Because if anything happens to any of them, Commander, I can promise you that no matter where I am at the moment, I will find you. And I will rip out your insides and wear your fur as a new coat. Do you understand? I don’t care if you even had anything to do with it. I will keep that promise. I could just as easily kill all of you and take your ship to find him on my own, but I’m feeling generous today.” She explained with a malicious and serious tone in her eyes. “Now, I believe you said that Emperor Zarkon would like to see me? So let’s cut a deal, shall we?” She held out her hand and smiled. Now, she was bluffing. You could even say she was lying through her teeth. But the looks at the Galra’s faces told her they bought it. She Ayane continued to poise herself with grace until the commander shook her hand. 

“You have my word they will not be harmed.” He promised. They locked eyes for a moment. And in that moment, he saw her resolve and absence of fear. He knew that she was just crazy enough to try at her promise, but that wasn’t the reason behind his actions. 

Ayane turned to the villagers one last time. “I’ll be back for Seigi. So take good care of him, ok.” And then she walked onto the ship, a whole new chapter awaiting her. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Once aboard, Ayane found a seat and sat down. The Galra soldiers around her swarmed, ready to move her, but the commander waved them off. “She’s our guest for now. Should she remain compliant.” He said sternly. 

“What do I call you, commander?” Ayane asked, a cocky tone in her voice. 

“Ruther.” His answer was curt and simple. He turned to the front of the ship and gave the orders to exit the planet and warp. 

Ayane watched out the window as the people she had come to know looked on with worry. She couldn’t see their faces, but she knew their thoughts. Uncertainty began to cloud her mind as butterflies flipped and fluttered in her stomach. She wondered for a moment if the Galra could hear her racing heart, or smell her fear. She took a silent breath. ‘I will find you, brother.’ She thought as the ship prepared to warp. ‘I don’t care if they break me. I will find you.’ Her promise stood proud even as her breath left her when the space station came into view. 

Ruther now stood behind her, watching her reactions. “Welcome to Central Command. I do hope your body is as strong as your words. Else you won’t survive.” His words were more a warning than a threat. 

“If I die,” She said without looking at him. “Then I will haunt you forever if those people are harmed.” He gave her a puzzled look, and she glared at him with dead-seriousness. She smiled when she saw the look in his eyes. “You seem afraid. Why? Do you believe in ghosts?” She laughed and stood up. Ruther stepped away from her and she passed him to find the exit. 

“Commander?” The guard at the door gave Ruther a quizzical look. 

“I’m not afraid of her… I just can’t tell if she’s serious or not…” He explained before following after her. 

Commander Ruther and ten of his soldiers escorted Ayane through Central Command. Ayane’s apprehensions got worse and worse with each step. A feeling of dread came over her when they entered an ornate hall. Ruther spoke with the guard about an audience with the Emperor. 

“Tell Emperor Zarkon that I have found the family of the Champion, and I have brought her to him.” 

The guard entered the room. A moment later he exited, followed by a strange figure in a cloak. Everyone in the room stiffened even more and a chill ran down Ayane’s spine as the piercing golden eyes seemed to find their way into her soul. 

“This prisoner is related to the Champion?” A scratchy voice croaked from the figure, who appeared to be female. 

“Ye- yes Haggar.” Ruther answered hesitantly. 

“Why are they not bound?” The woman demanded. 

Ayane had not changed her resolute expression. She stepped forward with no apprehension. The guards around her all stepped aside, as if they were ready to clear the room should the woman become a beast. It was clear they all feared her. “Because I have offered myself willingly.” She stated with a confident boldness. 

The woman, Haggar, considered Ayane for a moment. “The Emperor is too busy to handle the trivial matters of a single prisoner.” A sneer came across her face. “So I will be handling you. The rest are dismissed.” The eleven Galra that brought her to the hall scampered away like cockroaches in a room after the lights flicked on. Haggar’s gaze did not leave Ayane. “Follow me.” She said and began to walk down the hallway. 

Ayane obeyed and followed her closely until they ended up in a small room. It had a bed, a desk with a chair, and a door that lead… Somewhere. She looked at the woman in confusion. 

“You will stay here until I am ready for you.” She demanded. 

“Alright.” Ayane didn’t argue the woman. She simply stood in the room and watched her carefully. 

“Why have you given yourself willingly, child?” Haggar asked. 

“I am looking for my brother.” Ayane stated. 

The witch laughed. “You are a fool to come here. Your brother left long ago. Now you belong to me.” She began to leave. 

“With all due respect, ma’am.” Ayane beginning to speak stopped Haggar in her tracks. The human’s eyes narrowed as her resolve hardened again. “You call him your Champion, that means he is strong. What makes you think I’m not? You say that he left. How are you to know that I am not just as capable?” Haggar turned to face her. Ayane stared her down. “I am his twin. His other half. That means that we are connected. I know very well that he is your enemy, and that you plan you use me as bait. In fact, I planned for that. Call me whatever you wish, witch. But this is just the beginning of our dangerous game.” She smiled. “If you wish to play along, I promise you won’t be bored. We will see whose game this really is.” 

To Ayane’s surprise, Haggar smiled back at her. “I have thousands of years of experience in this. What do you have that makes you believe you can match me?” 

Ayane smiled as a shine flickered in her eye. “Goals.” Her only answer cause Haggar to laugh again before leaving her. Once she was alone Ayane spoke again. “And an unbreakable bond that just got stronger.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The very next day Ayane awoke to find that her room was still dark. There was no clock in the room that she could read, and she figured that she wouldn’t understand it even if she found one. While she began to wonder what the time of day was, she came to the realization that the had been away for Earth for so long, she didn’t even know what day it was. Perhaps she could ask someone, but the likelihood of the Galra measuring time the same way Earth did was pretty low. So instead she decided to investigate her room. The bed she had slept on was shockingly comfortable for a prison cell, which led her to wonder what sort of prison cell this even was. It had the feeling of a hotel room more than anything. The walls were a dark silvery metal that was surprisingly warm to the touch. She felt her hands along the walls to find that there wasn’t even a single imperfection or crease. How did they even build it, she had wondered. She then sat at the desk. “Why is there a desk? Do they have their prisoners do paperwork or something?” Ayane fumbled through the six metal drawers of the bolted down desk, only to find that they were empty there was a set of clothes sitting on top of the desk, but she chose to look at those later. She instead walked over to explore the other room. Unsurprisingly, it was a washroom. It appeared to have all the amenities of a basic bathroom, complete with a shower. After spending a few minutes familiarizing herself with the working of each amenity, she decided to shower. She tied her absurdly long hair into a top bun to keep it from getting wet, as she doubted there was enough time to dry it, and her hair had been recently washed anyway. The shower came with soap and hair-wash, as well as something that at least smelled like conditioner. Ayane wondered what other similarities humans shared with Galra. When she left the shower and wrapped herself with a towel, she tested out the hairbrush that had been left on the table by the sink. She noticed that there was even a teeth cleaning paste. After examining it for a moment she learned that she would have to dip her finger into the circular canister and spread the paste along her teeth. There was a finger glove included to prevent fur from getting mucky, or claws from poking gums, but it was too big for the human, so she used her bare finger. She took the small brush and began to rub in the paste. She rinsed out her mouth using a provided cup when she was done. “Huh… I think my teeth actually look whiter…” She said, examining herself in the mirror. Finally, she left the sub-room and inspected the provided clothing. It was a long black dress with no identifying marks of any sort. Also provided was an odd type of overcoat that would wrap around it similarly to a robe. She didn’t see any reason not to wear it, so she tried it on. The gown itself was quite baggy on her, so she put her normal clothes on instead, slipped the dress back over her head and used the tie from the coat to tighten the waistline. She then tried on the coat and noticed how it draped over her dress like a curtain when she stood still, and billowed around her when she moved. She was sure it was too big, since it nearly reached the floor. The sleeves were too long for her arms, and reminded her of a kimono. The coat also had an oversized hood for some reason. She wore the whole thing and checked her reflection in the mirror. “I look like the Grim Reaper…” She mused. She then slipped off the coat and hung it over the door. She did look pretty silly wearing the long dress over her clothes, but at least it felt better than the loose fabric dusting against her bare. The dress’s hem just barely showed her pants, but she didn’t even bother trying on the shoes that were left for her. The sleeves of the dress covered her to her elbows, and left enough room to fit in an extra set of arms. Still, she kind of liked it. Ayane always did prefer more simple styles. And she thought she pulled off the oversized dress pretty well. 

She then turned to the door and looked at it carefully. There were no handles or keypads. She only knew it was a door because of the crease on the wall around it, and she had remembered entering through this space. She figured that it was set up this way to prevent prisoners from escaping. “I have to admit that this room is quite fancy for a prison cell.” She hadn’t realized that her comment was audible. She casually leaded against the door and looked around the room. After realizing there was nothing of use here, she closed her eyes and focused. She took a deep breath and lowered herself to the ground slowly, sliding along the door with a fluid motion that seemed like a marionette cut from her strings. Her legs sat in front of her, delicately crossed and to the side. She let herself flow into the void around her. Her body stayed where it was, in a state of rest. But her mind journeyed lightyears away. Hopeless as it may have seemed to one who did not share their bond, she searched. Her mind and spirit searched the universe for it’s match. Tens of billions of stars releasing heat, planets and moons revolving around their suns, she could envision it all. She could never begin to imagine the life that may have existed on those words. But much like the way she did before leaving her own world, she turned to those many jewels in the empty space that now blanketed the base. She turned to the stars and called out the name of the one she sought. 

“Takashi.” 

_”Takashi.”_

She called out that name in her mind and in reality. And she waited. Her voice rang through the silent void like a beacon. A radar that sent a signal into the void seeking someone that would return it’s sound. And finally-

_”Ayane.”_

Her eyes opened and her determination sparkled in her grey eyes. 

He was there, and she would find him. 

She heard the footsteps on the other side of the door and stood to face it. When the door opened her cocky gaze met the golden eyes of a witch. 

“Good morning, Madame Witch.” She said pleasantly, admiring her own use of words that combined an insult with a title of respect. “Are you ready to play?” 

The witch’s own mouth curved in a sinister grin. “I admire your gall, child. What do they call you?” 

Interesting choice of words. Ayane thought a moment. She had considered giving her true name, but Haggar hadn’t asked for that. She asked what people called her. The name that everyone used for her brother was the first part of their surname. It happened to mean white. A friend of his once learned this and asked what name in Japan meant black. “Kuro” Takashi had said. _“Or Kuroko, that one’s more feminine.”_ The others had then decided to jokingly call her that. _“You two are twins but you’re so different. Shiro is bright and academic. And Ayane, you’re just… Quiet. You work hard but you never connect with people. I knew a mute once that was more a social butterfly. You guys are night and day, you know? Black and white.”_ The nickname seemed to stick. All Takashi’s friends called her Kuroko from then on. But to each other when they were alone, they would always be Takashi and Ayane. Only they knew each other’s true face. Only he knew the dark secret she kept hidden from the rest of the world. A part of her that would never really fit in. Matthew Holt had named her other half perfectly. _”Black Child.”_

“What do they call me?” She closed her eyes with a smirk. “Well, You may just call me,” She opened her eyes and stared determined at the alien. The light from the walls gave her an odd shade. Her dark grey eyes seemed almost entirely black. 

“Kuroko” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So…. Yeah, I know this one took… A very long time. I’ve been getting swamped lately, and I tend to push things off for a while. I never lost interest in it, I just took on too many projects at once. I have an upcoming project for valentine’s day, and I’m going to be attempting to work out every day, so don’t expect much from me. Just know that I will be working on this story, just slowly. I have big plans for this story, plans that involve Kuron, my own version of the original paladins, a plot device with themes from both Evangalion and Avatar the last Airbender, lot’s of music, sad death scenes, and a half Galran princess. Also Kuroko will be loosing a leg. I just haven’t decided if I want it to happen on screen yet… At any rate, I have plans! So don’t give up on me! 
> 
> Note: Whenever Kuroko is alone and speaking, She’s speaking in Japanese. The same is for any early memories involving her parents, and any time when she was alone with her brother.


End file.
